AU: Healing Process
by WayWardWonderer
Summary: A mission gone wrong leaves one member of the team injured and the rest of the team reflecting on their past mistakes. Tony, Steve, Thor, Loki, Bruce, Natasha and Rhodey must find a way to band together before the next mission arises, otherwise the team will fail once again and dissolve completely. But first the team must learn to forgive each other and learn to trust.
1. Healing Process

The unusual mass of people that composed the team known as the Avengers had tracked down an alien signature in the icy barren landscape of the arctic and had subsequently engaged in battle against a small, but powerful squadron of black marketeers attempting to steal scrapped research equipment left abandoned by a scientific expedition decades prior.

The aliens, who were a mixture of several different races but called themselves the Pillagers, proved to be a worthy adversary. The leader was a reptilian creature with a greenish, brown complexion on its scales. Wielding a large energy blaster it unleashed a bombardment of shots at the Avengers while its fellow aliens proceeded to engage in physical combat directly.

Along with the laser blasts filling the air the leader also released several small metallic drones meant to distract the Avengers while also releasing smaller energy blasts to stun the Avengers in the field.

A dozen larger aliens, ones who were muscular and bore massive claws and dripping fangs, were their own weapons on the battlefield.

Tony 'Iron Man' Stark soared through the wide open blue sky with his repulsor ray aimed at the alien ship in a an attempt to disable the two engines. One shot landed dead center of the target and damaged the first engine but his additional shots had been deflected by a energy field.

' _One down_!' Tony addressed the rest of the team over their com link. ' _One to go_! _How're we doing out there Cap_?' It took everything he had to talk to Steve without being hostile or antagonistic. ' _I need a head count_!'

Steve 'Captain America' Rogers was leading the charge on the icy terrain with his shield in hand. "Half of the aliens have been taken down, but the other half is giving us a little trouble!"

' _Can't Thor take them out with his magic axe of doom_?'

"He's busy knocking the alien drones out of the air!"

' _What about, and I can't believe I'm asking this, what about Loki_?'

"Loki is with me!" Steve replied honestly as he swung his shield and knocked a massive alien to the ground, its body impacting the ice and causing it to crack as it slid away from the duo. "The aliens are too quick to take on without a partner!"

Loki, who had regained Thor's trust and was steadily earning his redemption by allying with the Avengers, had his back to Steve's and was using his daggers clutched in his graceful hands to subdue the swarming aliens with fast slices through the air.

"We cannot afford to divide our focus." Loki stated as he focused on his next opponent. "If we can keep the aliens on the ground with us it'll give Thor the chance to disable the drones with his lightning and allow Stark to permanently disable their ship."

"You're right." Steve ducked down and avoid a massive claw while smashing his shield into the alien's torso knocking the wind out of it. "What do they want anyway?"

"I'd wager they had detected a valuable mineral source that was previously used in the construction of the now buried equipment and are attempting to salvage it."

"For weapons?"

"Either for themselves or for the highest bidder." Loki plunged the blade of his dagger into the neck of a rampaging alien killing it instantly. "Regardless of their motivations we cannot allow them to succeed. Not only will an unknown foe be armed with new technology, it'll only encourage other scavengers to raid this planet."

"Countless people could get hurt." Steve realized as he threw his shield into the face of one alien and caught it as it ricocheted off its skull. "Stark; do what it takes to take out that ship!"

' _On it_!' Tony confirmed as he circled over the ship for the dozenth time. ' _I told you we should've brought Banner_!'

"I didn't think this would be a 'Code Green' type of mission!" Steve defended as he continued to fight alongside Loki atop the ice and snow.

Thor landed with a hearty thud on the icy ground next to Steve and Loki. "With Lady Romanoff and Friend Rhodey on their own mission we could not risk leaving the compound unguarded."

"Did you take out the drones?" Steve asked as he scanned the immediate area for the next attacking alien.

"Yes. My axe easily disposed of the troublesome menaces."

"Good. Help Tony take down the ship." Steve ordered as he spotted his next opponent. "As long as they stay grounded they can't steal anything from the planet."

"Agreed." Thor leapt into the air allowing his axe, Stormbreaker, to carry him off into the sky to meet with Tony at the alien ship several meters away.

"Loki," Steve turned his head slightly to look at Loki over his shoulder. "we need to lead the aliens closer to the ship. It's a lot easier to hit a single large target than taking out a bunch of smaller, moving targets."

Looking toward the alien ship in the distance Loki watched as Tony and Thor bombarded the craft with repulsor and lightning strikes as the aliens on the ground attempted to flee. Sparks from the lightning and heat from the repulsors were beginning to melt the ice and destabilize the once solid layer of ice over the lake and beneath the heavy craft.

"Perhaps we can use the ice to our advantage." Loki motioned to the cracking and melting ice plane with his dagger.

Steve gave Loki a small smile and nodded. "Let's do it."

Tony flew up high and aimed his two repulsors mounted in the palms of his gauntlets at the remaining engine only to have his aim disrupted by an unexpected shot from an alien foe on the ground below him.

' _Thor, I need a little crowd control, please_!'

Unleashing a blast of lightning on the gathered mass below the aliens were stunned and rendered unconscious, collapsing onto the ground in a heap.

' _Thank you_.'

A large alien foe was sent flying into the pile courtesy of a powerful swing from Steve's shield, while two smaller aliens landed on the first as a blast of green energy from Loki's hands launched the duo into the air.

"Not bad." Steve complimented as he and Loki joined Thor in surrounding the ship.

"Same can be said for you." Loki replied curtly. The ice beneath his boot cracked loudly and snaked along the frozen over lake and under the craft. "Shall we finish this?"

Thor swung Stormbreaker and struck a large alien with the side of its sharpened blade sending the snarling beast hurtling into the side of the craft and denting it with an impressive 'thud' in the process.

As the battle raged the three Avengers on the ground wrangled the swarming aliens toward the ship while Tony locked his aim on the engine one last time. The powerful commotion being caused by the battle cracked the ice further and the surface began to drift apart as the single layer of ice splintered into multiple pieces.

' _Give the word, Cap_.' Tony called out as he locked onto his target. ' _Let's end this_!'

"Get ready!" Steve responded as caught an alien's fist with his shield and pushed it backward.

Thor tossed Stormbreaker into the air once and caught it by its handle as he prepared to strike the axe down onto the ice and shatter it entirely.

Loki drove one of his daggers into the jaw of an alien as it tried to use its massive fangs to bite him. The dagger fended off the snarling creature easily, forcing it to retreat and regroup with its fellow aliens.

The ice continued to crack and snake all over the surface of the lake surrounding both the aliens and the Avengers in massive fissures that destabilized their footing. Ever alert and on guard Loki took notice of the danger.

"Step back." Loki urged as the crack on the ice snaked and circled around Steve. "You're too close-"

"NOW." Steve commanded as he lifted his shield up to protect himself.

Tony unleashed his repulsor blast at the ship while Thor brought Stormbreaker down with a mighty swing.

The explosion created by the engine's destruction and the wave of energy that emanated from Mjolnir created a devastating quake that finished off the ice over the lake. The ship's hull crashed through the fractured surface of the ice. As it sank it dragged several alien bodies into the water with it.

A cloud of snow and ice plumed into the air obstructing the view from the air temporarily leaving Tony blind save for his H.U.D. showing the three heat signatures of his allies on the ground beneath him.

Violent tremors caused the three Avengers on the ground to stumble on their feet, but it was Loki who saw the immediate danger and reacted accordingly.

"Move back!" Loki shouted as Steve's foot slipped through a crack in the ice and became wedged between two large separate chunks.

As Steve lost his footing and struggled to wrest his foot free of the ice the alien ship's nose dove into the lake causing the entire ship to flip and remaining perfectly vertical, balancing precariously on one end.

Slowly the ship lost balance and began to tip toward the trapped Avenger who was unaware of the looming danger as he tried to free his leg.

"Rogers!" Loki dashed toward his trapped colleague and managed to shove him out of the way with his shoulder. The rough but necessary impact was enough to free Steve's leg as he pushed out of harm's way.

The ship tilted and quickly reacted to gravity, falling at a frightening speed forward and landing on the ice directly where Steve had once been trapped and where Loki was currently standing. The lengthy wing of the ship slammed down onto the surface of the ice, pinning Loki beneath its immense weight and the unyielding cold of the lake under his body.

As the ship broke through the ice a thunderous crash echoed across the tundra as a spray of icy cold water erupted from the cracked ice where the ship collided and began to sink rapidly.

Steve, laying on his side on the broken ice watched in horror as the ship sank beneath the icy surface of the lake, dragging down limp bodies with it as it disappeared from sight into the depths of deathly cold water within seconds.

Tony landed on the ground next to Steve and extended his hand to the downed man. Opening the visor of his helmet he looked around at the aftermath of the battle and of the overall carnage. "Everyone okay?"

"Loki!?" Thor had seen Loki push Steve out of the way but hadn't seen him step out of harm's way. "Brother! Answer me!"

Steve got back to his and released his grip on Tony's arm. "He pushed me out of the way of the ship, but I didn't see him-"

Tony's visor slammed back down over his face. Using the H.U.D. he scanned the water beneath their feet for any heat signatures and caught sight of one signature that was humanoid, but it was quickly cooling as the icy water overwhelmed it. "Got him!"

Flying up into the sky a few feet and slammed back down Tony managed to use his suit to break through the ice and sink into the water in search of Loki.

"No!" Thor dropped Stormbreaker as he prepared to dive into the water as well, but Steve's hand grabbed onto his arm and held him at bay.

"Can you withstand extreme cold?" Steve asked calmly but seriously as he studied his allies worried expression. "Because I already know that I can."

"I... I cannot just stand idle-"

"You aren't, you're waiting." Steve stated as he dropped his shield in the snow beside Stormbreaker. "We're getting him back."

Taking a deep breath Steve dove into the water and easily swam down into the depths of the lake toward the distant lake bed far below. His super solider strength and stamina allowed him to endure the relentless cold as he reached the wreckage of the ship and spotted the bright white lights from Tony's suit illuminating the murky water as he lifted the wing of the ship up and away from a pale figure partially buried in the sediment.

Swimming over to the uncovered figure Steve hooked his hands under Loki's arms and hefted him up from the sediment that created a swirling cloud of dust that made the murky water all the more opaque. Freed of the debris Steve was able to wrap one arm around Loki's chest and used his other arm and strong legs to swim to the surface of the lake.

Tony had seen Steve dive down and pull Loki free of the muck and followed after. Grabbing onto Steve's hand as he rose to the surface Tony pulled the two men through the water and breached the surface of the lake, his suit easily able to break through the thick ice that had drifted and collected over the surface of the lake.

Thor watched with wide eyes as Tony hovered a few feet over the lake with Steve hanging onto his arm and Loki's limp body being held under Steve's arm at his side.

Slowly Tony lowered from the air to allow Steve to drop to the ground and gently lay Loki down on the disturbed snow that lined the battle scarred lake.

"Loki?" Thor knelt beside his brother and pressed his hand down onto Loki's motionless chest. "Brother..."

Loki was deathly pale and blue. A large bruise was already forming on the side of his face stretching from his jawline up to his temple and over his right eye, that was dark purple and swollen shut. Large tears marred his black and green armor exposing painful bruises and bleeding lacerations all over his body that lined up with the torn material. The unnatural way in his his right arm was resting at his side was indicative of a painful break in his both his radius and ulna. His left knee was swollen and covered in blood that had smeared all over his leg through the torn armor that poorly protected his limb.

Thor lowered his head down to Loki's chest, pressing his ear down in search of a heartbeat but finding none. Rocking back onto his heels he gave his allies a wide eyed glance of pure worry and relentless sorrow.

"I cannot hear his heart beating..."

Tony knelt down beside Thor and pressed his hand down on Loki's chest. "F.R.I.D.A.Y. give me a reading."

' _Loki's vital signs are negative_.' The feminine A.I. replied as she ran a fast but accurate scan over Loki's entire body. ' _My scanners indicate full cardiac arrest due to hypothermia and drowning_.'

Steve put his hand on Tony's shoulder to pull him aside as he straightened Loki's neck to ensure his airway was unobstructed before he pinched Loki's nose and began performing rescuing breathing on the dying man.

Thor didn't recognize the act of C.P.R. and wanted to pull Steve away from his brother, but Tony stopped Thor from doing so by gently putting his hand on Thor's shoulder. "Easy big guy, this is what he needs right now if we're going to save him."

After delivering two breaths Steve shifted his position placing one hand over top the other and lacing his fingers together into a single fist. Placing his fist over the center of Loki's chest he began rhythmic compressions with a controlled strength to force the stopped heart under his fist into motion once more.

"Damn, his ribs are broken." Steve lamented openly as he felt the broken bones shifting and grinding under his hands. "I just hope I don't puncture a lung..."

Tony watched silently with his eyes darting back and forth from Steve performing C.P.R. to the visual display of Loki's vitals on his H.U.D. With every compression against Loki's chest the H.U.D. would show an artificial beat of his stopped heart being registered, but there was so sign of his heart attempting to beat on its own.

Steve gave Loki two more breaths before unlacing his fingers and placing the palms of both hands on either side of his lower rib cage and began pressing down in an attempt to force the collected water from his lungs.

"Come on, Cap." Tony encouraged in a low whisper as he watched Steve diligently trying to revive the downed god. "It takes a superhuman to save a superhuman."

With two more breaths delivered Steve resumed chest compressions over Loki's heart. As Steve counted to the eight compression Loki's body suddenly jerked violently as he began coughing harshly. Water and pale pink foam erupted from his mouth as he began choking and fighting to breathe on his own.

"Roll him onto his side!" Tony shouted even though Steve was already in the process of doing just that.

Steve put one hand under Loki's head and the other hand between his shoulder blades to support him as he continued to cough up the water and weakly suck in much needed oxygen to catch his breath.

"Brother?" Thor put his hand on Loki's uninjured arm as the wounded man finished coughing up the torrent of water. "Try to relax. We are here."

' _Sir_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. spoke up and caught Tony's ear. ' _I am detecting internal hemorrhaging. Loki will bleed to death within the hour if he doesn't receive immediate medical attention_.'

"Yeah, I figured as much." Tony acknowledged the A.I. before opening the visor on his helmet again. "Thor, can you carry him to the quinjet? We need to get him back to the compound A.S.A.P."

"Yes." Thor slipped his arm under Loki's shoulders, careful to not jostle his neck while Steve continued to support his head, then slipped his other arm under Loki's legs. Picking up his still deathly pale brother's limp body into his arms Thor began running to the quinjet in a surprisingly smooth manner. "We must make haste."

"Yup." Tony agreed as his visor closed again and he took off into the sky. Grabbing onto Steve's arm after the super soldier picked up his shield he carried his ally to the quinjet and arrived just seconds after Thor made his way up the lowered ramp and into the quinjet. "F.R.I.D.A.Y., contact Banner at the compound. Tell him we have an emergency."

' _Will do_.'

Steve followed Thor as he pressed a button on the interior of the ship's hull summoning a gurney from its compartment concealed within the wall. Thor laid Loki down on the gurney gently before unclipping his flowing red cap from the shoulder pauldrons on his armor. Draping the cape over Loki's body he sat on the seat opposite of the gurney and put his hand on Loki's cold forehead. With his free hand he summoned Stormbreaker to his grip and set it down on the floor beside the gurney.

Tony exited his suit and marched into the cockpit of the quinjet. Powering up the craft he set the coordinates for the Avengers Compound in upstate New York and took off into the chilly sky over the arctic.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. monitor Loki's vitals and give constant updates." Tony ordered as he looked back over his shoulder to the gurney where Loki was laying under Thor's red cape. Thor was still sitting beside him, his hand still on Loki's forehead and his thumb absentmindedly rubbing against his wet hairline. Steve was standing at the foot of the gurney watching Loki, his face almost as pale and blue as the very god he had just saved. "Same for Rogers. He was exposed to dangerously cold water."

' _Yes, sir_.'

Tony set the controls to autopilot and walked slowly out of the cockpit to stand next to the gurney. Reaching under the gurney Tony activated the portable oxygen tank that was secured beneath and slipped the attached transparent oxygen mask over Loki's nose and mouth. A faint fog appeared on the interior surface of the mask to display the weak breaths escaping Loki's weak body.

A smear of pink color foam had stained Loki's lips and ran down his chin in a thin line.

Steve had noticed the pink foam as well and waited for Tony to walk toward him before addressing it. "The color of the foam should be white, right?"

"Yeah." Tony confirmed in a low voice. "That means there's some internal bleeding going on."

"How does a god bleed to death?"

"I don't know." Tony admitted as he gave Steve an odd look. "How does a mortal man survive seventy years trapped in ice? Or keep life altering secrets all bottled up inside and not expect it to explode over time?"

Steve knew that Tony was still angry with him and rightfully so. Choosing to not say anything to prevent an argument he shook his head and turned his focus from Tony to Loki and Thor.

Thor was speaking very softly to Loki. He was speaking in a language that neither Tony or Steve could understand as he spoke words of comfort to his critically wounded brother.

' _Sir. Dr. Banner is expecting our arrival_." F.R.I.D.A.Y. announced almost intrusively. " _He has gathered a small emergency medical team to assist_.'

"Well, that was unexpected." Tony remarked indifferently about Bruce's decision to bring in outside help. "But if anyone knows how to keep a low profile and select trustworthy allies it's going to be the guy who evaded pursuing military intelligence for years on end."

Loki began to wheeze as he breathed. Thor moved his hand from Loki's forehead and lightly rested on his chest. "He is in distress."

' _Loki's left lung has partially collapsed_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. stated as the A.I. continuously ran scans over Loki's body. ' _I have updated Dr. Banner on his condition_.'

Tony returned to the cockpit and switch from autopilot to manual. "Tell your brother to hang on a little longer." He called back to Thor as he increased the speed of the quinjet. "Hate to risk a fine from flying through restricted airspace for nothing!"

* * *

Dr. Bruce Banner was preparing the exam table in his research lab to receive the injured Avenger as soon as the quinjet returned to the compound. With the aid of a friend and medical doctor, Dr. Christine Palmer, Bruce managed to clean and sterilize the lab within acceptable levels. Christine had brought with her an impressive array of medical equipment including surgical tools and medication that even Tony Stark would be unable to acquire through his numerous resources and connections.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. can you bring up the medical records on both Loki and Thor?" Bruce stood before a large electronic screen with his arms crossed nervously over his chest.

The medical information that Bruce had previously chronicled on the two gods was brought up on the display for himself and Christine to view. ' _Here are the records you requested_.'

"Fortunately for us the normal Asgardian and Jotun base vital readings aren't too dissimilar to our own." Bruce noted as he refreshed his memory regarding Loki's overall physiology. "The big issue we'll most likely run into is keeping Loki's body temperature stable."

"You said Loki is a 'yo-ton'? What is that?" Christine asked as she too read over the gathered information.

"Uh, he's a Frost Giant. He was born in a world that neighbors Asgard and Thor's Father adopted him after he was abandoned."

"Oh." Christine also folded her arms over her own chest as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. "Sounds like this Loki guy had issues long before he attacked the Earth."

"Thanos attacked the Earth." Bruce corrected, surprising himself in the process as he defended Loki from the widespread misinformation regarding his role during the Chitauri Invasion. "Loki was recruited by Thanos and forced to lead the invasion, otherwise Thanos would've tortured him, killed him, and then lead the invasion himself."

"I don't think Loki really did us much of a favor by 'taking one for the team'."

"No," Bruce agreed with a heavy sigh. "but against all odds he turned out to be the lesser of two evils."

' _Dr. Banner, the quinjet is two minutes away from the compound_.'

"Thanks F.R.I.D.A.Y. We'll be ready."

' _I'll inform Mr. Stark right away_.'

Christine unfolded her arms and pulled a small hair-tie from her pocket. Pulling her shoulder length dark hair back into a ponytail and then into a neat bun she put her hand on Bruce's shoulder. "Come on. We better scrub up."

"Yeah. My favorite part." Bruce followed after her slowly. "You know, we're just going to have wash up again after we exam him. Why not wait until we're ready to perform the surgery?"

"It's more sanitary this way, and there's nothing wrong with washing your hands twice. How long's it been since your last medical procedure?"

"On myself or someone else?"

Christine gave Bruce an amused smirk as they crossed the lab to the large sink and began thoroughly washing their hands, starting from their elbows and working their way down to their fingernails.

"Uh, the time I assisted in anything medical I was still in school."

"Internship?"

"Yeah."

"Don't worry, it's just like riding a bike." Christine comforted him sweetly. "Except the bike is covered in blood. So... yeah, just like riding a bike."

Bruce stopped washing hands just long enough to give Christine an odd glance. "Why do I get the feeling your childhood was far more exciting than mine?"

* * *

The quinjet landed in the private hangar of the Avengers Compound swiftly with its crew still in tow. Thor was hovering protectively over Loki, watching with a heavy heart as his younger brother struggled to breathe through his collapsed lung and broken ribs. Steve was silently observing without any complaints of his own though he knew that Tony was watching him warily.

"We're home." Tony announced as he flipped a switch to lower the ramp to the quinjet before powering the craft down and joining his allies in the hold of the large vessel. Craning his neck he looked down at Loki and cleared his throat nervously. "How's he doing?"

"Not well." Thor stated as he and Steve worked together to remove the straps that secured the gurney in place.

Steve led the way as he and Thor wheeled the gurney down the ramp and into the compound where Bruce and Christine were awaiting their arrival. Bruce met the Avengers at the door with a penlight in his hand. As soon as he saw Loki he felt a knot form in the pit of his stomach. The group of five walked alongside the gurney down the lengthy corridor toward Bruce's lab, Steve leading the way with Thor right at Loki's side and Tony taking up the rear.

Bruce managed to push aside his fear long enough to regain his professional composure. "How long did it take for you to get him breathing again?" Lifting only one eyelid as his other eye was too swollen to be opened, Bruce shined the light and watched Loki's pupil sluggishly respond to the change in the intense brightness.

"Maybe two or three minutes." Tony answered as he watched Christine put the stethoscope in her ears as she placed the bell onto Loki's poorly rising and falling chest to listen more extensively to his wheezing breaths. "Who's your friend?"

"Dr. Christine Palmer." Bruce replied as he turned off his light. "She's a colleague and friend of Dr. Strange. She's here to help us." He turned to look at Thor as he spoke. "All of us."

"Poor breath sounds on the left. Congestion in both lungs. Heart is strong but bradycardic." Christine stated as she removed the stethoscope and draped it around her neck. "He's going to need breathing treatments after everything is all said and done."

Loki's wheezing suddenly ceased all together as his body went limp on the gurney.

"Loki?" Thor noticed immediately and put his hand over Loki's mouth and felt nothing against his palm. "He's not breathing!"

"We can't wait any longer." Christine stated as her instincts as a doctor kicked into full gear. "We have to move. NOW."

Bruce and Christine grabbed either side of the gurney and began jogging the rest of the way into the wide opened door of the exam room leaving Steve and Tony behind to grab onto Thor's arms to prevent him from trying to enter the room along with them.

"Let's go this way." Tony suggested to Thor while trying to pull the god's muscular arm in the intended direction he wanted to go. "There's a window that'll let us see into the room without getting in Bruce's way."

Thor reluctantly allowed Tony to lead him away from the closed door, knowing that he was leaving Loki alone to fight for his life. While he trusted Bruce he was unsure of Dr. Palmer and unsure of the effectiveness of Midgardian medicine on non-Midgardian beings.

"He had stopped breathing." Thor bemoaned as Tony and Steve guided him to the adjacent room where he could watch the life saving procedure. "And he is already so weak. I fear he will not recover."

"Loki managed to outsmart death before, he can do it again." Tony insisted without batting an eye. "Be patient."

"The healers of Asgard were skilled in medical treatments that had been far more advanced than any other realm. Now Asgard is gone, and the medicine with it."

Steve opened the door to the secondary room that provided a view into Bruce's lab. Feeling as though his presence was unwarranted he did not enter the room, choosing to wait outside instead.

"We not be Asgardian level with our treatments and remedies," Tony empathized as his hand subconsciously found its way to the center of his chest and to the scar left behind by the shrapnel and arc reactor. "but we do alright."

Through the window Thor and Tony could see Loki laying unconscious on the makeshift operating table in the neighboring research lab. His pale and bruised face was void of all life. The tube that had been inserted down his throat to help him breathe was attached to a respirator that was forcing artificial breaths into his damaged lungs.

Next to the respirator was a cardiac monitor displaying Loki's horrifyingly weak vital signs. His rate was much slower than it should have been, even while unconscious. Low blood pressure was also low from the devastating blood loss as a result from his internal bleeding. An I.V. stand holding three units of blood was positioned beside the cardiac monitor. An I.V. had been inserted in Loki's left arm delivering the blood; a synthetic substitute to accommodate Loki's Jotun physiology replaced the blood as quickly as Loki was losing it.

A sheet was draped over his abdomen and another raised up around his chest to create a barrier as Christine operating on Loki's damaged chest to repair his lung and set his broken ribs.

Tony was hypnotized by the sight of Bruce's gloved hands and pale blue scrubs covered in Loki's blood as he assisted Christine during the surgery. Was it always so brutal when it came to life saving surgeries? So much blood. So much chaos. Yet this was the correct method for helping someone: cutting into their body to repair the unseen damage.

"When we were children," Thor stated in a very low despondent voice. "we spent our time running through the mountains and forests or sparring in the garden. Loki always seemed to get tired before I did despite our close age and common habits. Loki would fall prey to illness for more often than I ever did and I never understood why."

Tony forced himself to break eye contact with the operation taking place through the glass and look at Thor as he spoke.

"Father never paid any mind to Loki's health but Mother was worried. When I asked about it she insisted that it was something that Loki would outgrow in time and that I should not concern myself with it, but her worry always made me worry."

"Was it because he wasn't Asgardian?" Tony asked not because he was curious, but because he needed to keep his mind preoccupied at the moment.

"Yes." Thor confirmed with a slight nod. "As it turned out raising a Frost Giant in a realm where the temperature is constantly above freezing temperatures can have negative consequences. Loki was physically unable to cope with the warm environment of Asgard and would constant become overwhelmed by heat."

"How did he survive? A positive outlook and 'can-do' attitude?"

Thor smirked at the quip, appreciative of Tony's attempts to lighten the situation. "Mother encouraged Loki to practice using his magic as often as possible, and with that encouragement she insisted that he find a way to control the temperature around him. Naturally skilled in the art of magic Loki was able to use his magic to keep his body cool and no longer succumbed to the heat of summer or battle."

"For someone who needs to keep cool it seems a little odd that he's always covered from head to toe in leather armor."

"A true sign of his power. His magic infiltrated the material of his armor and shields him not only from harm from weapon strikes but from the natural elements around us. But just as our own bodies have limitations, as does his magic."

"Explains why he survived the extreme cold of the water. And only suffered a few breaks instead of his whole body being destroyed."

Thor closed his eyes and bowed his head as the very idea of seeing Loki far more seriously wounded than he already was made him feel sick.

"Sorry. Didn't mean to paint such an ugly picture."

"I have seen worse."

"Is that... regret I detect in your ever melodic voice?" Tony noticed with an irritating accuracy.

Opening his eyes Thor raised his focus and watched as Loki lay helpless on the operating table with Bruce and Christine fighting to heal his wounds and keep him alive. "I remember when I was first given Mjolnir, I had been seen worthy in our Father's eyes, Loki and I were sparring together. During our bout I foolishly struck Loki in his side and nearly killed him."

The revelation caught Tony off guard. Thor didn't seem like the type of guy to make a mistake during battle, let alone out someone he cared about in harm's way.

"The healers took Loki away and examined his battered chest. The strike I landed had broken a rib and punctured his lung. He couldn't breathe. Mother and I watched from the entrance of the healing chamber as the healers fought to save his life. I can still remember the bruise on his chest, the blood pooling all around him... The raging fever that followed kept him unconscious and bedridden for two weeks. In all that time neither Mother or I left his side. Father only came to see him but once."

"But they saved him. The healers. You and your Mother also helped save his life." Tony reminded Thor sternly. "He's right there. Proof that he's strong. Proof that he can recover from this."

"Loki... He nearly died because of me. When asked what happened he denied that I was at fault."

Tony's brow furrowed in confusion.

"Loki claimed that he had lost his footing and fallen clumsily upon a large boulder. Mother knew that he was protecting me, she knew he had always been far too nimble and graceful to merely lose balance and fall so brutally. But no matter how much she attempt to coax the truth from him never once did Loki blame me or tell Father that I had not the control necessary to wield Mjolnir."

"That's what brothers do. They look out for each other."

"Yes. Yet I did not look out for him. For years our friends," he paused and scoffed at the idea of Lady Sif and the Warriors Three actually treating Loki as a friend rather than just the 'brother of Thor'. "my friends," he corrected himself before continuing. "would tease Loki about his grace, speaking as though he would always be lesser of a warrior compared to myself all because of an incident for which he was not at fault. Never once did he tell them or anyone else what really happened on that day."

"But you know the truth." Tony stated in a surprisingly emotional tone. "You know what he's capable of. And so does he."

Inside the lab Christine had finished repairing Loki's damaged lung expertly. She and Bruce watched as the damaged organ reinflated with the aid of the respirator. The sutures held in place and there was no additional bleeding.

"Lung is starting to regain proper color." Christine noted as she checked around it to ensure there were sharp bits of bone from the broken ribs that could potentially damage the lung once again. "How's his blood pressure?"

Bruce checked the monitor and shook his head. "Still low. There are only two more units of the synthetic blood left. I'd rather not use them unless absolutely necessary."

"Agreed." Christine carefully set the broken ribs in Loki's chest without damaging his lungs or heart in the process. "Is there any way human blood could be made compatible in the event of an emergency?"

"In theory, yes. But it'd take-"

The monitors suddenly began shrieking as Loki's body went rigid and began to convulse violently under Christine's hands. "Seizure." She announced while remaining completely calm. Putting her hands down on his arms to hold him in place as much as possible she endured the seizure and hoped that the violent thrashing didn't exasperate his already frail condition. "Two milligrams of Diazapam, now."

"Won't that affect his breathing?" Bruce asked as he loaded up the syringe with the proper dosage of medication.

"He's already on the respirator," Christine stated as she watched Bruce insert the needle of the syringe into the I.V. connected to Loki's arm. "we'll monitor his breathing closely."

"Right."

As the medication was administered the convulsions became less violent, the thrashing calmed and soon Loki's body was laying as still as it had been moments before. The monitor stopped screeching as Loki's heart rate calmed to acceptable parameters and his blood pressure reduced itself.

"He's stable." Christine noted as she checked the cardiac monitor. "We need to patch him up quickly. He won't be able to tolerate being under anesthesia for much longer."

Thor and Tony had witnessed the seizure through the window and Thor was nearly overcome with dread. The god was shaken considerably and backed away from the window. Pressing his back to the wall he slid down to the floor and pressed the palm of his hand against his sweating, pale face.

"Easy big guy." Tony knelt down on the ground so he could look Thor in the eyes. "They got him back. He's still alive."

"I cannot lose my brother again, Stark." Thor admitted as a tear rolled down his cheek from his remaining blue eye. "I cannot bear it."

"You're not going to lose him." Tony insisted as he shifted his weight and sat on the floor at Thor's side. "We won't lose anyone else. I promise."

* * *

From outside the closed door Steve could hear Tony and Thor speaking. His enhanced hearing thanks to the super soldier serum had its perks and its flaws. It made it very difficult for Steve to tune out voices he shouldn't be hearing, but at that moment he was glad to have overheard Thor's story from his and Loki's childhood, as well as Tony's sincerely compassionate words of encouragement.

Steve couldn't help but think back to the events that had led to the destruction of the team. How he and Tony just couldn't agree on the correct course of action and how neither man was willing to back down or compromise. How Steve put his best friend, James 'Bucky/Winter Soldier' Barnes over the entire team had been a selfish act, an act that was made worse when Tony discovered that Bucky had been responsible for the deaths of his parents Howard and Maria Stark.

Thor and Loki had been at odds. The two brothers and best friends became enemies on and off the battlefield, both ready to battle to the death if necessary. But despite their falling out the two brothers had found a way to reunite and forgive each other.

Why couldn't Steve and Tony bring themselves to do the same?

Pride? Stubbornness? Resentment? Or was there something else that was keeping the two Avengers from forgiving each other and aligning as a team?

Lost in thought he didn't notice Natasha walk up to him and stand right beside him. She looked into his blue eyes as he stared blankly at the floor. Gently she put her hand on his shoulder to bring him back to reality.

"Steve?"

"Nat." Steve nearly jumped at the sound of her voice. "When did you get back?"

"A few minutes ago. Rhodey is locking down the hangar." She gave Steve a sympathetic glance. "F.R.I.D.A.Y. told us what happened during your mission." She nodded to the closed door knowing that Thor was behind it. "How's Thor doing?"

"About as well as you'd expect." Steve rubbed at the back of his neck nervously. "Did you find what we were looking for?"

"No." Natasha crossed her arms in defeat. "General Ross kept all of his files under lock and key, and hidden surprisingly well."

"How important are those files?"

"I don't know. The only reason we want them is in case that paranoid bastard is hiding other super soldiers that could help us."

"We need all the allies we can find."

Natasha could see there was more on Steve's mind beyond Loki being injured and their small numbers. "You okay? You seem distracted."

"I... I've just been thinking."

"About the past? Take it from me dwindling on the past is only going to inhibit your future."

"Yeah, I'm aware."

"Need to talk?"

"I don't think talking will-"

The door to the room opened and Tony stepped out with Thor following behind him. "Surgery's over. Loki pulled through."

"Already?" Steve arched his brow at the statement. "It's only been a few minutes."

"Steve," Natasha gave him an odd look. "it's been four hours since you've returned."

"It... Uh..."

Tony pushed past Steve coldly and walked the corridor with Thor still following. "Time flies when you're having fun."

"Come on." Natasha pulled on his arm. "Sit down and talk to me. No more secrets. Right?"

"Right."

* * *

Tony walked with Thor to the recovery room of their small infirmary of the compound. With the team all but dissolved Tony felt it unnecessary to keep a full medical staff on call, but now he regretted his decision. But at the moment, with the entire universe in turmoil, he decided the medical personnel left behind after the infamous 'snap' were better off tending to the other survivors on the Earth and not locked away in the corner of the Avengers Compound.

Christine, who was still wearing her bloodied scrubs, was standing beside the bed where Loki was laying. His left arm war draped over his abdomen and her fingers were wrapped around his wrist to monitor his pulse.

Thor was sitting in a chair beside Loki's bed with his hand on Loki's right shoulder, careful not to touch the cast supporting the broken bones in his arm.

An ice pack was resting against Loki's swollen eye and his swollen knee. The numerous lacerations that marred his body had been cleaned and bandaged properly in an effort to prevent an infection. Loki's chest was wrapped in white gauze that was only a few shades paler than his own complexion.

Wires connected to the cardiac monitor snaked over his chest, the leads attached to his chest where the bandages weren't covering his pale flesh. The tube remained in his throat as the respirator continued to breathe for him while his lung healed from the injury.

Bruce walked up to the bed having changed from his bloodied scrubs and into his normal clothing of gray slacks and a dark blue dress shirt. Studying Thor's face he could see that he was gravely worried for his brother and his heart was being weighed down by incalculable guilt.

"Loki is holding his own." Bruce proclaimed confidently to the shaken god. "But I have to ask, how did this happen? This just isn't battle scars we're dealing with, it looks like he was crushed."

Thor couldn't bring himself to tell Bruce what had happened as he bowed his head in shame.

Tony cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh, there was a little snafu on the ice. The alien ship went down and started sinking, but it went down swinging." Looking over his shoulder to ensure that Steve wasn't in the room Tony finished the explanation. "Steve got his leg caught in the ice as the ship tipped over and went crashing down toward us. Loki pushed Steve out of the way and literally went down with the ship."

Christine sighed as reached back toward her neck and untied her scrubs. "Crush syndrome explains his symptoms." Slipping off the bloodied cover she stepped back from the bed and gave Thor a sympathetic glance. "We'll monitor him very closely. But for now the best thing for him is to rest."

"Come with me." Tony insisted as he motioned toward the door with his hand. "There's vacant quarters you can have for as long as you're staying with us."

"Thank you." Christine folded up her bloodied scrubs and disposed of them in the medical waste bin before joining Tony at the door.

Thor never took his eyes from his brother, watching his bandaged chest weakly rise and fall in rhythm with the respirator that was keeping him alive. Bruce of course followed Thor's gaze and decided it'd be in Thor's best interest if he could somehow get his mind off of Loki.

"Hey, I know you're worried about Loki but I need to know if you're injured, too." Bruce kept his voice low and sincere as he addressed his friend. "You're resilient but not immortal."

"I am uninjured." Thor replied without ever taking his eyes from Loki. "Rogers was exposed to the same extreme cold that had overwhelmed Loki. Perhaps he requires aid."

"Maybe. I'll check in on him." Against his every instinct as both a doctor and a friend Bruce elected to leave the room and give Thor some privacy as he sat vigil at Loki's side. "He'll be okay, Loki's tough." Bruce reminded Thor as he walked by him and patted him once on the shoulder. "You'll see."

* * *

James 'Rhodey' Rhodes had resided himself to the common area of the compound and kicked his feet up on the large table between the two long couches. Exhausted and feeling defeated he let out a weary sigh and leaned his head against his hand as he closed his eyes to try and quiet his ever racing, overwhelmed mind.

Tony walked into the common area and plopped down on the couch beside his best friend. "Missions was a bust?"

"Yeah. We didn't find anything." Rhodey opened his eyes and glanced over at Tony with tired gaze. "How'd you do?"

"We stopped the aliens," Tony confirmed with an indifferent shrug of the shoulders. "but we almost drowned the God of Mischief in the process."

"F.R.I.D.A.Y. told us he was in pretty rough shape."

"We did sort of drop an alien spaceship on him, so yeah, he's a little sore. Go figure!"

"And I take it Thor is with him and worried sick."

"Yup."

"And Steve?"

"I think Romanoff is playing therapist with him."

"How're you doing?"

"Fine. I didn't get crushed and I didn't drown, so I'm good."

"How about your conscience?"

"What? You mean am I upset that we got a little careless and nearly killed a member of the team? Only slightly."

"Don't do that again." Rhodey sat upright and gave Tony an annoyed stare. "Not everything bad that happens to the team is your fault."

"I was the one who blasted that ship into the ice over the lake," Tony began to argue his point in a needlessly hostile manner. "I was the one who was watching overhead and didn't see that Steve or Loki were in danger. I'm the one who had the technology to keep track of everyone through the suit and yet I didn't see Loki go through the ice. I was lucky to catch a glimpse of his heat signature before his body went too cold to register. I was supposed to help lead this team and I failed to look out for them."

"But you got him out of the water and revived him."

"I got him out of the water, Steve revived him. I just stood back and watched. He played leader and I was just a witness."

"So... you two worked together?"

Tony's eyes narrowed slightly at the question. "What's your point?"

"You and Steve were able to overcome your hostility toward each long enough to save a life. You may not think you're a leader but I can say for certain you are. You both are, that's why you can't stop butting heads!"

Tony actually laughed at the comparison that Rhodey was alluding to. "Are you kidding? I'm nothing like that boy scout!"

"Personality wise? Absolutely not! But when it comes to protecting the people you care about? Hell yes! You'd both rather give up your own life than let someone else, anyone else, die instead." He held up a hand to shush Tony before he could even begin as he leaned toward his friend. "Even Loki."

"Who knew we'd end up with, of all people, Loki on the team?"

"Kind of poetic, isn't it?"

"I don't follow."

"Think about it." Rhodey folded his hands together in thought and pressed them to his chin. "Loki is the one guy who united all of the original members of the Avengers into one team. And Loki only did what he did because of Thanos. Now it's Thanos we're all after, including Loki himself."

"Are you saying that everything Loki did back then during the invasion was some elaborate plan designed specifically to bring us all together now?"

"He is the God of Mischief and Magic. I wouldn't put it past the guy to go through with an incredibly intricate little plot and succeed."

"I..." Tony couldn't help but hide his smirk as he considered Rhodey's suggestion. "If this is true and Loki is the reason the team is still limping on then that means he may actually be the quintessential anti-hero." Kicking his feet up on the table he folded his arms over his chest, leaned back against the couch and closed his eyes as fatigue won out. "Asgardians are weird!"

* * *

Steve and Natasha had resided themselves to the exterior pool located on the lowest floor of the compound. While Steve told Natasha the details of their mission and of the accident that had nearly taken his life and very well could have if Loki hadn't intervened. When Steve mention his leg being trapped and diving into the freezing water after Loki she reacted accordingly and demanded to see his leg.

Rolling up the leg of his lightweight armor Steve showed Natasha the faint bruise around his ankle and shin.

Natasha eyed the bruise for a moment before giving Steve a cheeky grin. "You'll live you big baby."

"Yeah, I figured as much."

"Aside from that... Is there anything else you need to discuss? Maybe Tony?"

"What's to say? He hates me and I frankly can't blame him."

"I don't think it's safe to say he hates you. I think he just hates the secret you kept from him." Natasha had gotten used to playing the role of 'big sister' to the rest of the team and sometimes she couldn't stop herself. "You know, if you just tried to talk to him I think he'd listen."

"But what do I say?"

"Whatever feels right. You'll know what to do."

"I sure hope so." Steve tried to roll his pant leg back down but he stopped as the tight fabric pressed against the bruise and made him wince. "Man, must go all the way down to the bone!"

"Good timing." Bruce commented as he found the duo sitting at the edge of the pool. "I wanted to check in on you."

"Just a bruise." Steve dismissed Bruce's concern just as easily as Natasha had done. "It's fine."

"Hypothermia?" Bruce asked as he checked the bruise curiously with his hand. "Cough? Congestion?"

"No. I feel fine. At least physically."

Natasha could see it in Steve's eyes that he wanted to ask about Loki but was too frightened to do so. "Bruce, how bad is it?"

His hands froze at the sound of the question before he finished examining the injury. "Bad."

* * *

Christine returned to the infirmary where Loki was left to slowly recover from his injuries. Thor refused to leave his side and continuously spoke to him in a language that only the two brothers understood as he kept vigil.

Walking over to the bed Christine gently peeled back the bandages over Loki's chest to check the healing incision left behind by her scalpel when she repaired his collapsed lung. "Sutures are holding." Next she slipped her stethoscope back into her ears and ran the bell over his chest. "Even breaths sounds. Heart is strong."

"How long before he wakes?"

"I can't say for sure." Christine admitted as she slung her stethoscope back around her back. "He took a pretty severe blow to the head, and his near drowning will have only exasperated his condition."

"And his breathing..." Thor eyed the respirator warily. "I do not understand what the device is doing."

"That device is breathing for him until he has the strength to breathe on his own. In a day or two I'll remove it. He should start breathing on his own again."

"And if he doesn't?"

Christine always hated delivering bad news to the family of her patients and this moment was no different from any of those. "Then he'll... All we can do is hope for the best."

"Loki... he may not survive?"

She reached over and took Thor's hand in her own. "I've seen patients in worse condition recover despite the odds stacked against them, don't lose hope. Right now a strong constitution and familiar voice will help him in ways you can't even imagine!"

"Yes." Thor nodded as he put his hand over Loki's arm just above the cast. "You are Doctor Palmer. Thank you. For everything."

"You're welcome." She squeezed his hand once before letting it go. "Why don't you get some rest? I'll watch over him."

"No. I am not leaving. I insist on staying."

Christine knew how stubborn family could be when it came to their loved ones, and she could only imagine how stubborn a god would be about the exact same scenario. Backing down she discreetly resumed checking Loki's vitals and didn't press the matter any further.

* * *

Tony was too restless and too guilt ridden to relax for long. Shortly after Rhodey excused himself to get some sleep Tony found himself wandering aimlessly through the compound until he inevitably found himself standing outside the door to the infirmary where Loki was resting with Thor ever present at his side. Opening the door just wide enough to peer through he spotted Thor sleeping lightly with his head resting on his arm, the same arm laying beside Loki's broken arm bound protectively in a cast.

The only sound in the room came from the steady rhythmic beeps of Loki's heartbeat on the cardiac monitor and the hissing of the respirator that was keeping him alive.

Having served their purpose the now emptied bags of blood had been removed and replaced with a unit of standard saline to ensure Loki remained hydrated and that his blood volume had dropped too low while his body continued to recover.

Christine was making notes on Loki's recovery on a clipboard when a long, sleepy yawn escaped her tired lips.

Seeing an opportunity Tony quietly walked into the room and addressed the kind doctor. "Need a coffee break?" He asked in a soft whisper. "Fresh pot already brewed in the kitchen." Stopping at the foot of the bed he couldn't keep his eye from wandering over and staring at Loki's expressionless face. "I can keep a lookout for a minute or two if you need a break."

An expert on reading people and their motivations Christine understood the true intentions and decided to play along. "Sure. That sounds great." She sat the clipboard down on the top of the cardiac monitor before leaving the room. "Thank you."

"I'll have F.R.I.D.A.Y. page you if something happens." Tony whispered to her as she gracefully walked out of the infirmary. Walking forward a few steps Tony stood at the opposite side of the bed where Thor was sleeping and eyed the unconscious god warily. "Even while in a coma I don't quite trust you. And I can't decide if that's something to be admired or ashamed of."

Neither Loki or Thor stirred as Tony addressed the helpless god laying near death.

"Look, I don't think we'll ever reach a level where we can consider ourselves friends, or even colleagues, but..." He couldn't help but look over at Thor as he spoke. "that doesn't mean I want to see you dead. We all make mistakes. But that doesn't mean we should let our mistakes define who we are or who we can become. I'm proof of that."

Unsure of what it is he really wanted to say Tony ended up rambling a little bit as he spoke. Perhaps he was evading his true emotions out of a deep seeded sense of self-preservation, or perhaps the admission of guilt would also be an admission of failure that was keeping him from speaking of what was truly on his mind.

"Thor trusts you." Tony resumed speaking in a low voice. "If anyone has the authority to declare your be trustworthy or an enemy, it's him. He was willing to give the chance to prove that you can atone for your past and help us build a better future, so I guess I should do the same. I mean, you did sort of save Rogers from becoming another statistic in an alien invasion gone wrong. You didn't have to, and frankly, I can wish you didn't because we aren't exactly on speaking terms right now... That was sick, wasn't it?"

Loki of course never responded, and neither did Thor; who continued to sleep peacefully undisturbed.

"Guess it'll be a little hard to keep the team together if we're too busy picking each other apart over the past. Like I said, if Thor is willing to give you a chance then so will I. And... maybe I can do the same for Rogers. I don't think I can forgive him but I think I can learn to work with him one last time. We all have a common cause: stopping Thanos. If we focus on our common ground and stop trying to put up barricades we'll all fare a lot better."

Very lightly and very briefly Tony set his hand on Loki's shoulder.

"Thank you for saving Rogers." Before he retracted his hand he gave Loki one last thought. "And... I'm sorry I failed to watch your back during the mission. When we face off with Thanos I swear that I won't stand idle while anyone else gets hurt, ever again."

Christine returned to the infirmary with a mug of coffee in her hands and casually walked over to the cardiac monitor to reclaim her clipboard. "Anything exciting happen?"

"Aren't comas always exciting?" Tony tried to joke as he discreetly took his hand from Loki's shoulder.

"Depends on the cause of the coma."

Tony smiled broadly at her quip before excusing himself from the infirmary. "You would've loved me in college. I would've been your star patient!"

"Or cadaver!"

"You." He turned on his heels to point at the kind doctor before he backed fully through the doorway. "I like!"

* * *

Exhausted both mentally and physically Tony had gone to bed for the night without checking in on Bruce or anyone else before disappearing into his private quarters. Steve couldn't bring himself to look at Loki knowing that it was his fault that the god had been injured to begin with. He too went to his quarters and remained there for the rest of the night. Bruce and Christine had decided to watch over Loki in shifts while Thor refused to budge at all from his seat beside Loki's bed.

Loki was still pale but not nearly as pale as he had been when he was first returned to the compound. The bruising on his face was already beginning to heal, as were the lacerations all over his body. The incision on his chest was also healing at an impressively quick rate but there still had been no sign of regained consciousness in the downed god.

Rhodey and Natasha both stopped by the infirmary to check in everyone while also taking it upon themselves to patrol the compound for any potential attacks by any of Thanos' goons, and to monitor any communication that could either signal another alien attack or worse.

Christine had been monitoring Loki closely and listening to his chest frequently for any sign of infection and ensuring that his lung was still healing properly. Two uneventful days had passed on with Thor remaining statuesque beside Loki's bed and the other Avengers stopping by to check in on the two gods.

"So..." Tony asked Bruce quietly as he joined his friend over at the desk at the far end of the infirmary. "how's our star patient? I mean, he's been stable for two days so that's a good sign, right?"

"Yeah, it's a good sign."

"So why's he still unconscious?"

"He took a blow to the head, had the wind knocked out of him and was trapped under water for at least two minutes. The fact that he even survived the transport back to the compound from the arctic is still astronomically rare that expecting anything more seems kind of cruel."

Tony stared blankly at Bruce for a moment before speaking up again. "Don't sugar coat it, how's he doing?" He asked sarcastically.

"Tony..."

"Come on! The guy's as stubborn as me! There's no way he's going to die... right?"

"Sure. Right."

"That wasn't very convincing."

"What do you want me to say?"

"Just say he'll be okay. Please."

"I can't do that."

Tony let out an irritated sigh. "Thanks. Big help."

"Something you want to talk about?" Bruce could sense the immense guilt in Tony's voice and was waiting for him to admit it. "You seem to have something on your mind."

"Alright, fine." Tony crossed his arms and sat down on the corner of the desk. Staring through the opened door to the infirmary he stared at Loki and Thor sitting beside him. "It's my fault."

"Your fault?"

"Yes." Tony pointed to himself as if he needed to clarify to whom he was referring. "I was supposed to lead the team through the mission and I failed." He then motioned to Loki through the doorway. "Now Loki is going to pay the price. It's not right. I'm tired of other people getting hurt because of me."

"Tony, what happened wasn't your fault."

"How do you know?" Tony looked at Bruce with an almost accusatory glare. "You weren't there. All you know is what we told you. So how in the hell can you sit there with a straight face and tell me that?"

"Because Tony, I've listened to the story from three different points of view now: Yours, Steve's and Thor's. You all say the same thing and with that consistency comes honesty. No one blames you, so you shouldn't blame yourself. You aren't responsible for everything negative that befalls the team."

"Easy for you to say."

"Not really." Bruce smiled a little. "Remember, I'm the guy who broke Harlem and was a reigning gladiatorial champion over a hedonistic planet for two years. I know a thing or two about guilt and disastrous outcomes."

"Hedonistic planet?" Tony's glare softened. "You did all that without me? Some friend you are!"

Bruce returned the good humor stare. "Sorry. Next time, I promise!"

While Rhodey set about checking the compound's security protocols and make contact with their allies in Wakanda regarding their next mission with taking down Thanos and anyone who allied with the twisted tyrant, the other members of the team tried to go about their business as normally as possible. But living in an abnormal world during an abnormal crisis had proven this feat nearly impossible.

Steve and Natasha walked into the infirmary together and stood beside the bed. Just as Tony was blaming himself for Loki's condition, Steve too was trying to accept and hold all of the blame; believing himself to be solely at fault.

"Thor." Steve greeted his ally with a kind tone. "How's Loki?"

"Resting." Was Thor's curt reply as he adjusted a fresh ice pack over Loki's less swollen eye. "Just as he has been for two days."

Natasha intervened to try and ease the tension in the room. "How about you? Have you been resting at all?"

Thor stubbornly didn't answer.

"That's a 'no'. Please. Go get some sleep. We'll keep an eye on Loki."

"No." Thor adamantly refused. "I have sworn to protect my brother and I will not break my word while he lays so near death."

Christine approached the bed in a timely manner and checked Loki's vitals. As she listened to his chest everyone else in the room held their breaths in anticipation. Satisfied with Loki's current condition Christine decided it was time to remove the tube from Loki's throat and allow him to breathe without assistance.

"Bruce?" She called out for her colleague. "I'll need your help."

Tony accompanied Bruce into the infirmary, the two men gathering around the bed where Steve and Natasha were already standing.

"Something wrong?"

"No. I just want to remove the tube, I'll need your hands."

"Right. Tell me what I need to do."

"Keep his head and neck stable while I remove the tube."

Christine turned off the respirator and unclipped the attachment at the end of the tube from the machine. "I'm going to ex-tubate him, keep an eye on the monitor. If his oxygen level drops too low we'll have to put him back on the respirator."

Thor didn't like the sound of that and wanted to protest, but Natasha's hand on his shoulder was enough to dissuade him from trying to intervene.

"Okay, here we go." Christine stated as she took a firm grip on the end of the tube and prepared to pull in a controlled but non-violent manner. "Ready?"

"Ready." Bruce placed one hand on Loki's forehead and the other beneath his neck. "Go."

With a swift pull Christine managed to slide the tube back out of Loki's throat without causing the unconscious god to choke or gag. However the lack of response on Loki's end was unsettling.

Bruce retraced his hands and watched nervously for any sign of life from the wounded god.

Christine pressed the stethoscope to Loki's chest and listened carefully. "Nothing."

Natasha's hand tightened on Thor's shoulder.

"Come on Loki," Bruce encouraged as he watched Loki's oxygen levels steadily drop on the monitor. "breathe."

Christine kept the stethoscope in place. "Still nothing."

Tony crossed his arms defensively as he watched the upsetting scene play out against his will. Steve was unable to look as the idea of watching an ally die before him was too much to bear.

Bruce never took his eyes from the monitor. "Oxygen levels are down to ninety percent."

"If he gets down to eighty we're going to have to re-intubate him." Christine announced firmly as she took charge over her patient.

"Eighty-seven percent."

"Come on, Loki." Thor rose to his feet and pushed Natasha's hand from his shoulder. "Loki? Brother. I know you can hear me. You must breathe! I know you can do it. Breathe!"

Bruce shook his head as he continued to watch the numbers decrease. "Eighty-four."

Christine wasn't going to wait any longer. If Loki didn't start breathing then he'd risk permanent brain damage. "Prepare to intubate. He can't-"

A sudden deep gasp for breath startled everyone in the room as Loki finally responded and began to breathe on his own. Releasing his gasped breath slowly Loki's chest began to rise and fall in a steady rhythm.

Christine smiled as she listened to his breaths and stood back. "Even breaths sound, no congestion." She reflexively draped her stethoscope around her neck as she pulled an oxygen mask from the oxygen tank equipped to the side of the respirator and slipped the mask over Loki's face. "This is great progress."

Thor let out a sigh of relief as he put his hand on Loki's forehead. "Well done, brother."

Tony uncrossed his arms and gave Bruce a smug look. "See? Knew he'd be okay." Backing out of the room in an attempt to hide his relief he excused himself and disappeared from sight with his thumb pointed back over his shoulder to the doorway. "I'm going to check in with Rhodey. Maybe someone found our giant purple target and we can finally blow him up! Or something..."

Steve turned his head a little to hide his amused smirk by Tony's reaction and addressed Thor with a positive reaction. "Glad to see he still has some fight left in him."

"Loki will surely grace the halls of Valhalla one fateful night, but it will not be on this night." Thor proudly smiled at his brother's fortitude. "In time he will awaken and he shall join us when we seek our vengeance upon Thanos."

Natasha approached Thor and smiled warmly at him. "Come on. He's going to be alright. You took care of him and now you need to take care of yourself."

"I will not leave him alone." Thor insisted as he attempted to decline Natasha's suggestion.

"He won't be." Steve interjected. "I'll sit with him until you get back. Go. Get some sleep."

Before Thor had the chance to try and refuse again Natasha had her hand on his shoulder and began pushing him toward the door to the infirmary. "Even gods need rest. Loki is proof of that."

"Very well." Thor finally agreed as he staggered a little on his feet. "I shall rest for only an hour, then I shall return to Loki's side."

"An hour is better than nothing." Natasha knew that Thor would be far too stubborn to settle for anything more. Showing her more compassionate side she showed Thor through the corridors and escorted him to his private quarters.

Steve took Thor's now vacated seat next to Loki's bed as he took his turn keeping watch over the downed god. "Bruce, is there anything I can do to help him?"

"Nah," Bruce replied with a renewed sense of optimism in his voice. "Christine is doing everything possible for him. Just talk to him. Try to be a friendly voice."

"Friendly voice, huh?"

"It can do wonders for a person's recovery to hear encouraging words and a familiar voice." Bruce explained succinctly. Adjusting his glasses over his nose he nodded respectfully to Christine who was making notes on Loki's current condition. "Unless you need me for anything else I'd like to return to my research."

"No, it's all okay." Christine answered warmly. "Go. Thank you for your help."

"Anytime."

Steve watched as Christine carefully peeled back the bandages wrapped around Loki's chest diligently checked the healing incision. The surgically created wound was beginning to look red and mildly swollen which obviously worried Christine. She pressed the back of her hand to the side of Loki's face, careful of the still healing bruise over his eye, and frowned at the elevated temperature she felt radiating from his skin.

"I'm going to have to change his bandages and start him on I.V. antibiotics." She stated with a somber tone. "According to his physiology he should be running much cooler than this."

"Fever?"

"I hope not." Christine admitted with an uncertain glance. "I'm not sure how strong 'yo-tun' immunity is compared to our own."

Christine set about gathering fresh bandages, a bottle of rubbing alcohol and the aforementioned antibiotics while Steve stayed at Loki's side with an sympathetic stare fixing his blue eyes in place.

As someone who was frequently ill as a child Steve couldn't help but empathize with the ailing god: Asthma, countless colds, dozens of flus, ear infections, sinus infections, bronchitis, laryngitis, tonsillitis, even appendicitis had kept Steve bedridden and weak throughout so much of his childhood that he wagered he spent more of life sick than healthy until he was given the super soldier serum.

No liked being sick, and no one liked tending to the sick. Steve's late mother had been a nurse who succumbed to tuberculosis after she tended to so many patients of the same affliction. Losing her in such a noble way gave him a newfound respect and appreciation to all nurses, doctors and medics who risked their own lives to try to save the sick and injured without falling victim to the same fate.

"Need some ice?" Steve asked in a shockingly timid voice, almost like a child, as Christine cut away Loki's old bandages with a pair of small but sharp scissors.

"Ice? Maybe." Christine answered as she set about her work. "Let's see if the antibiotics help him first, if not then yeah, we'll have to ice him down."

Loki never reacted to Christine cleaning his incision with cold alcohol or to the voices speaking around him. Truly lost in the depths of the coma Loki was completely oblivious to the world around him.

"Can you help sit him up?" Christine asked as she removed the remaining older bandages and finished cleansing the incision. "It's much easier to wrap up his chest if he's sitting upright than laying down."

"Sure. Yeah." Steve put his arm under Loki's shoulders and sat the god upright very gently and slowly, allowing Loki's deadweight to press entirely into his arm and shoulder as he supported all of Loki's weight. The cast on his broken arm felt cold and heavy, like a dead limb and a reminder of how even gods weren't above the icy grip of death. "Like this?"

"Yeah, perfect."

Steve couldn't help but comment on the situation as an uneasy tension filled the room. "From what Thor's told us Loki's had a pretty hard childhood."

Christine gave Steve an odd glance. She didn't find herself particularly upset over the injuries Loki had sustained seeing as he had led the Chitauri Invasion and destroyed part of New York. The only reason she was helping Loki is because he had been made an honorary member of the Avengers only after Thanos' attack left them desperate for numbers and strength.

"Loki was adopted, lied to his entire life about who he really is and where he came from," Steve's eyes narrowed a little as he spoke. "never given a chance to prove that he could be just as strong or courageous as the people around him. Ignored. Overlooked. Sometimes forgotten completely..."

The weight of the emotion in Steve's voice softened Christine's heart toward the injured god.

"Only Thor and Loki's own Mother were willing to give him a chance, and now all he has left is Thor. No one else to rely, nowhere to call home."

"You sound like you're talking about more than just Loki." Christine observed kindly. "I can't imagine what it'd be like to lose so much of my life and be forced to live in a world that's nothing like how you remembered it."

"You get used to it." Steve flashed her a confident grin. "Friends help."

"You can lay him back down." Christine finished wrapping the fresh bandages and was now focusing on gauging the proper dose of antibiotics before inserting it into the I.V. "As long as he's left alone to rest I'm certain he'll make a full recovery."

A generic ringtone filled the air as the phone in Christine's pocket went off. She answered the phone and sighed openly as she gave Steve an irritated glance.

"Let me guess," Steve smirked playfully. "work."

"And it's gotten worse since the 'snap'." Christine confirmed. "We're short staffed and now overrun with people scared out of their minds. I need to go back to the hospital for a couple hours."

"It's okay. We can keep watch over Loki for a few hours. He won't be any trouble."

"I'm sure he won't be." Christine looked at the time on her watch and did a little math. "I should be back by midnight. An eight hour shift isn't exactly what I had in mind for this evening, but duty calls."

Steve watched as Christine hastily crossed the infirmary leaving him alone with Loki. Determined to keep his promise Steve stayed at Loki's side and would remain there until Thor returned.

"You know, I still need to thank you." Steve admitted as he turned back to look down at Loki's expressionless face. "You saved my life. I should've listened to you when you told me to get back, but I didn't. I was so focused and determined to destroy that alien ship that I forgot to watch my surroundings. If you hadn't pushed me out of the way I would've... Well, I probably wouldn't be here right now."

Running a hand through his blonde hair solemnly he leaned forward toward the bed with a woeful sigh.

"It already feels like I'm living on borrowed time. Asleep for seventy years while the rest of the world went on fighting, suffering, struggling to survive. Now I find myself battling a new kind of war. Not one to keep the peace, but to undo unspeakable hatred and malice. And I don't think I'm strong enough to fight this battle. Or lead the charge. Not this time."

The sound of heels clicking over the linoleum floor caught Steve's ear. Turning to look over his shoulder Steve eyed Natasha joining him in the infirmary. "Thor's finally sleeping. Stark and Rhodey are still scanning all frequencies looking for any and all potential sources of help, but we still haven't found anything."

"Not even from Fury?"

"Director Fury is still presumed K.I.A. as a result of the 'snap'." Natasha managed to hide her grief well but Steve knew she was still worried and a part of her was still hoping that he had somehow survived. "How're you holding up?"

"I'm fine. Sore but nothing I can't handle."

"Uh huh. And how are you really holding up?"

Steve took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Not great."

"Try not to lose faith. We've overcome the odds before, we'll just need to find a way to do it again."

"But at what cost?"

"Thanos has already wiped out half of the universe, I don't think we have any room for negotiation on what's on stake."

"Yeah. You're right."

Putting her hand on his shoulder Natasha offered him a modicum of comfort that he so desperately needed as she pulled up a second chair to sit beside Loki's bed next to Steve.

"You don't have to be here." Steve reminded her kindly. "I think I handle watching over him."

"I know, but, I want to be here. I've seen too much carnage, it'd be nice to see someone heal for once."

* * *

Thor bolted upright in his bed drenched in a cold sweat and panting as a lingering dread weighed heavily upon his shoulders. The nightmare was as vivid and real as any tragic memory that scarred even the strongest of hearts. Thor's trembling hands ran over his face as he wiped away the layer of the cold sweat and he caught his breath.

"How long was I asleep?"

' _Four hours, nine minutes_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. answered automatically, making Thor jump at the sound of her artificial voice.

"Uh... thanks."

' _You're welcome_.'

Standing up on his shaky legs Thor looked out the window overlooking the expansive compound to the setting sun in the horizon. The evening air was cool and inviting as the songs of crickets echoed over the peaceful ambience.

With his mind still focused solely on Loki the ever worried brother wandered from his quarters and back to the infirmary, only to find an uncomfortable scene folding out before him.

Loki's body was covered beneath bags of ice and under a thermal sheet as Natasha pressed a cold compress against his forehead. Steve was holding Loki's legs down as the god had begun to aimlessly thrash about, although weakly, in the throes of his fever dream. Bruce was checking through Christine's notes hoping to find something useful to help Loki as the fever suddenly overwhelmed his body.

The oxygen mask over his face was full of fog from his frantic escaping breaths as he fought back against a threat that was real only in his feverish mind.

"Loki?" Thor rushed into the infirmary and put his hand down against Loki's shoulder. "Brother. What is happening to you?"

Natasha gave Thor an unsettling answer. "He's burning up."

"What has happened during my absence?"

Bruce stepped forward removed his glasses with a sense of defeat in his voice. "He's developed some kind of infection and we're trying to treat it with antibiotics, but it doesn't seem to be working." The cardiac monitor showed Loki's current body temperature at 104.4 and threatening to increase at any second.

"Infection? How?"

"We aren't sure."

"If you aren't sure what caused the infection what makes you sure you're taking the correct course of action in his treatment?"

Steve shook his head as he admitted their ineffectiveness. "We don't."

Rhodey walked into the room with a large bag of ice in his hands. "This should help. F.R.I.D.A.Y. will let us know as soon as Dr. Palmer is back in the compound, let's just hope she got Bruce's message." Setting it down on the foot of the bed he and Bruce began wrapping large portions of the ice in clean towels and placing them all over Loki's body. "How's he holding up?"

"Not well." Natasha pressed her hand down against the compressed and pressed the back of her opposite hand to the side of Loki's neck. "This isn't working. We need more ice or a miracle."

"How about magic?" Tony suggested from the doorway as he strolled into the room casually. Looking down at Loki he asked F.R.I.D.A.Y. for an update. "Double check for me with a scan. What's his current body temperature?"

' _One hundred and four point four degrees, sir_.'

"And what should his normal body temperature be?"

' _According to the baseline for normal vital signs as provided by Dr. Banner's research approximately ninety-four point seven degrees_.'

"Okay, yeah, he's going to burn up and melt." Tony suddenly realized how dire the situation had become. "Thor, talk to him."

"What?" Thor didn't understand Tony's instructions. "What can I possibly say to him in this moment?"

"You told me that Loki learned how to use his magic to keep his body cool so he could live on Asgard, right? So talk to him and remind him that he has the power to cool himself down." Tony was adamant that Thor step up and talk to Loki. "You know him and he knows you. You're his brother, he trusts you. Now talk to him! You're the only one who can save him."

Thor gave Tony a look of uncertainty for the briefest of moments before nodding and addressing his brother in a calm manner. "Loki, listen to me. You are ill and have a dangerously high fever. I know it will difficult for you to hear my voice and understand but you must use your magic to heal your body. Remember everything that Mother had taught you as a child. All those lessons that you so easily mastered when you were but a child, you must find the strength to use them once again. Please."

Loki's eyes rolled back and forth under his eyelids as his body continued to suffer from the intensity of the fever.

"Please brother, hear me."

Steve felt Loki's legs relax as he stopped thrashing about against the unseen foe in his mind. Slowly he released his grip on Loki's legs and stood up. Looking at the cardiac monitor displaying all of Loki's vitals he could see the number indicating his temperature beginning to decrease. "Bruce, look at the monitor."

Bruce looked where Steve indicated and managed to flash the briefest of grins. "His temperature is starting to drop: down to one hundred and four point two. Point one... One hundred three point eight. It's working!"

Thor visibly relaxed at the update on Loki's condition. "That's it. You're doing well. Keep going."

Tony looked over to Bruce and motioned for him to accompany him to the far side of the room out of range of the other gathered Avengers. "From what Thor's told me Loki had this very problem when they were kids. It isn't an infection."

"It's not?"

"No. It's because we're on Earth and not 'yo-tun'... uh... place. It's too warm for him here. He's too weak to utilize his magic to keep himself cooled down on his own."

Bruce nodded in understanding at Tony's reasoning. "We'll keep up with the ice until he regains enough strength to control his body temperature on his own. Thanks Tony."

"Don't thank me. It was Thor who opened up about their past. I just listened." He cocked his head a little. "For once."

* * *

It was another two hours before Christine returned to the compound. In that time Loki's fever had been reduced greatly and was no longer life threatening to the already weakened god. Tony informed her on what had happened while she was away at the hospital and let her know that they had the situation seemingly under control.

Thor and Bruce had systematically placed and replaced ice as quickly as it melted to ensure that Loki's body remained consistently cool.

Once Loki appeared to be stabilizing Natasha and Rhodey excused themselves from the room so they could keep an eye on their security programs and monitor numerous frequencies for possible distress signals or allies attempting to make contact.

Steve stood against the far wall with his arms crossed as he watched Christine give Loki a quick but thorough exam.

"What's his temperature Bruce?" Christine asked as she wrapped her fingers around Loki's wrist to measure his pulse.

"Down to ninety-seven point two."

"Much better than he had been." Christine approved of the methods that had been used to reduce his fever. "It was close but he should pull through."

Thor closed his eyes as the relief washed over him. "Thank you for your help." He didn't open his eyes as he reached up and put his hand on Bruce's shoulder. "And to you as well, Friend Banner."

"You're welcome."

"And Stark." Thor looked up toward Tony who had been standing quietly behind Christine. "I appreciate everything you've done. Thank you."

"Uh, no problem." Tony hated being thanked, it was an unusual feeling that had always made him feel awkward ever since he was a child. "If you don't need me anymore I think I'll check in on Rhodey. If you need anything tell F.R.I.D.A.Y."

Steve had watched Tony silently, desperately wanting to speak up but he didn't know what to say. Forcing himself to walk forward, to follow Tony, Steve decided that he needed to face the past and own up to what he had done.

Tony had sensed that someone followed him out of the infirmary and attempted to ignore them, but a part of him knew it wouldn't be that simple. Stopping slowly he turned to face whomever it was that had followed and immediately grimaced when he locked eyes with Steve.

"Tony, look-"

"What?" Tony's tone was full of needless aggression as he turned to face Steve and pointed at him in an accusatory manner. "You think that a letter and an apology is all it takes to make up for the lies and deception? Or is this about that failed mission? How I should've been looking out for the team but royally screwed up?"

"Please... Listen... I know I can't make things right." Steve confessed in a very calm, collected tone. "I lied to you. I lied to protect one friend and ended up betraying another. There's nothing I can do to atone for such a horrible mistake, but know that I am truly sorry for everything that happened to you because of me."

Tony's expression softened as he noted the sincerity in Steve's bright blue eyes.

"I don't expect you to trust me and I would never ask you to simply let something like that go, you have the right to be pissed with me, but... For the time being can we just learn how to work together as a team? Maybe after we defeat Thanos we can learn to be friends again, but if you want to go our separate ways again... permanently... then I'll understand."

Tony just stared. As much as he wanted to tear into Steve and yell every ounce of pain out of his heart he just couldn't bring himself to do it. It somehow seemed unfair to lash out at Steve and he knew that it wouldn't do any good for the rest of the team to see the two of them still fighting.

"Please. Say something."

Tony kept silent.

"Say something, damn it!" Steve practically begged as he fought to keep his voice low. "Anything!"

Tony thought for a moment before finally replying. "Language." On that note he turned his back to Steve and walked away.

A mixture of hurt and amusement befell Steve at Tony's passing remark. Whether or not it was intended to be one of good humor, sarcasm or an extended olive branch he couldn't be certain. But at least Tony finally said something to him.

* * *

Thor resided himself beside Loki's bed with his hand resting on Loki's arm just above the cast once more. It was quiet in the infirmary save for the steady rhythmic beeping of the cardiac monitor and Christine's scribbling on the clipboard in her hands.

Exhausted and fighting sleep Thor's eyes closed and his head bowed down toward his chest. Just as it seemed the night would continue on uneventfully there was a low groan of pain from the bed as Loki's consciousness steadily returned.

"Loki?" Thor's eyes shot open and put his hand on Loki's chest as he stared at his brother's face intensely. "Can you hear me?"

Christine replaced the stethoscope as she ran the bell again over Loki's chest to listen to his heart rate.

"Open your eyes. Please." Thor sounded desperate as he spoke to his brother. "I know you can hear me, open your eyes."

Loki's head lolled slightly toward Thor as his eyes fluttered momentarily before opening into half slits. The bright green color of his irises shone through the dark circles that surrounded his eyes. Steadily Loki's blurry vision cleared as he opened his eyes fully and looked at Thor's worried face.

"Brother?" Thor smiled a little as Loki looked him in the eyes. "Are you with us?"

Loki swallowed once to clear the lingering raw discomfort from his throat before speaking a hoarse, raspy voice. The oxygen mask over his face muffled his voice but Thor could still understand him clearly as he spoke. "Wh- who are you?"

At the question Thor's smile disappeared and his eyes dulled with abject horror, his hand lifting up slightly form Loki's chest. "What? Loki... I..."

The sheepish smile that appeared on Loki's bruised face confused Thor for fleeting second before he realized what was happening.

"That is NOT funny!" Thor tried to scold but his laughter betrayed his feigned anger. "You had more worried enough!"

"I..." Loki swallowed again to try and rid the pain in his throat. "What has happened? Why am I here?" His focus shifted upward and locked onto the lovely face of Dr. Christine Palmer as she retracted the stethoscope from his chest. "And who is she?"

"A friend." Thor answered honestly as he nodded at Christine. "It's a long story, and I will tell you soon enough." He promised Loki as he pulled his hand from Loki's chest and patted his arm once in affection. "But for now, rest, and know that I will be at your side until you have healed. I promise."

"Thank you, brother." Loki let his eyes close heavily as he softly sighed and fell back asleep.

"You are most welcome."

 _ **...to be continued...  
**_


	2. Poisonous Connections

With a little luck and a lot of determination the smaller team of Avengers, those who had survived Thanos' infamous and catastrophic 'snap' when he halved the entire population of the universe, had located a secret government bunker that potentially housed invaluable documents pertaining to other enhanced humans to ally as a single force against Thanos himself.

Tony 'Iron Man' Stark used his technology to scan the snowy landscape of the abandoned dam in Northern Canada alongside Alkali Lake and located a concealed structure hidden several meters below the surface.

' _Meet at my location_.' Tony instructed over the com links to the rest of the team. ' _I found something neat_.'

"On our way." Steve 'Captain America' Rogers replied as he, Thor and Loki trudged through the snowy wilderness to the requested coordinates. "What did you find?"

' _A super secret government cover-up_.' Tony replied curtly. ' _Or the bunker that Rhodey and Romanoff tried to track down last week. I'm gong to go with the latter on this one_.'

The legendary axe Stormbreaker was clutched tight in his hand as Thor marched along behind Steve with Loki at his side. Loki had managed to heal rather quickly from injuries sustained in a previous mission but as his older brother Thor was still worried about Loki's overall health.

Loki's broken ribs and arm had healed entirely as did the numerous lacerations that previously marred his body. The internal bleeding was controlled with surgical intervention leaving only a dull ache behind. With only the faintest of bruises to indicate his past wounds Loki managed to keep up with Thor and Steve without any difficulty.

"How are you faring brother?" Thor asked subtly as to not draw Steve's attention or embarrass Loki with the question.

"My recovery has been substantial." Loki replied without breaking stride. "You need not worry about me."

"As your older brother I shall always worry about you."

Steve stopped at the treeline of the expansive forest and stood atop of fallen log as he scanned the immediate area. Looking toward the horizon he spotted Tony circling around in his suit above the point of interest. The shield on his back glistening in the sunlight overhead like the ice and snow that covered the forest all around him.

"We're here."

' _Good_.' Tony landed on the snow with a hearty 'thud'. The visor on his helmet opened and retracted into the suit giving Tony an unobstructed view of his gathered teammates. "Let's get inside."

Thor looked around at the wide open and unsuspecting space curiously. "I do not understand. Where is this bunker?"

"Beneath us." Tony replied confidently. "Now we just need to find the doorway that'll lead us inside."

Loki's keen green eyes overlooked the space quickly before locking onto a large dark gray boulder sitting idle in the distance. "There." He pointed to the boulder and began approaching it.

"...That's a rock." Tony commented as he watched Loki, followed by Thor, stand beside the large stone. "We need a doorway."

"Look about you." Loki instructed as he took a knee beside the boulder and ran his hands through the snow. "We are in the midst of a great forest, yes? But this particular stone is one that can only be located in the mountains dozens of meters to the East. Why is it here?"

Thor watched as Loki's hand uncovered the distinct outline of a doorway concealed beneath the snow. "To act as a marker."

"Precisely."

Tony joined the two brothers at the boulder and replaced his helmet over his head to access his H.U.D. 'F.R.I.D.A.Y., give me some info.'

The artificial intelligence gave Tony the requested data within seconds of running a scan of the terrain. ' _I am detecting a concrete structure two and half meters beneath your current location. Entryway can be accessed remotely. One moment, Sir._ '

Steve joined the trio at the boulder just as F.R.I.D.A.Y. remotely unlocked the electronic door. The large metal hatch over the entryway slid open at the Avengers' feet exposing a stone and metal staircase leading down into the hidden bunker.

"Good work." Tony removes his helmet again as he peered down inside. "After you."

Steve nodded and resumed the lead over the team. As he disappeared into the dark stairwell Thor followed close by with Loki right after him. Tony was the last to enter the bunker, instructing F.R.I.D.A.Y. to keep the doorway opened and to create a homing beacon to ensure that the team would find the only doorway without getting lost.

"It's dark." Steve noted as the natural light pouring in from the outside could only reach down so far before getting cut off. "Is there any power left in the bunker?"

"Nope." Tony replied as he reached the bottom of the stairwell. "There's a generator in the Western corridor. We should head there first."

"How? We can't see."

Loki sighed as he extended his right hand and snapped his fingers. "Allow me." A burst of green light erupted from his palm as a jade colored ember began to burn brightly in his grasp. "Ta-da..."

A green illumination basked the interior of the stairwell and connecting corridor in an eerie glow. The four silhouettes of the Avengers were cast in a deep black that stretched along the wall as the flame danced about in Loki's palm.

"Where do we go?" Thor asked as the four heroes entered a large open room with three locked doors leading in separate directions.

"West." Tony pointed to the locked door to their immediate left. "I'll get the generator up and running. You three check the other rooms."

"Hold it." Steve stepped forward to take issue a very important statement. "Even though this a pretty small area we shouldn't split up."

"Agreed." Thor put his hand on Loki's shoulder and pointed with his opposite thumb over his shoulder to the far right door. "Loki and I shall examine the Eastern wing for any information regarding these 'government programs'. We'll reconvene here."

"Wait, I don't-" Tony didn't want to team up with Steve for anything at the moment, but he knew Thor wouldn't let Loki out of his sight after he had been injured during the last mission.

"Come on." Thor used Stormbreaker to smash down the door leading down the corridor. The thunderous crash of the indestructible blade against the metal door echoed painfully throughout the bunker in a nearly deafening ambience. "We should hurry." Thor claimed as he lowered Stormbreaker to his side and motioned for Loki to enter the corridor.

Loki stepped into the lengthy and dark corridor, the green light of his fire guiding his path while simultaneously leaving Steve and Tony alone int he darkness as he ventured down the corridor with Thor at his side.

"Well then." Tony's visor and helmet closed around his head again. The H.U.D. allowed him to see and navigate the darkened corridor easily without the use of Loki's fire. "Let's get this done."

"You know I can't see." Steve remarked as Tony used his repulsor to blast open the locked door to the Western corridor.

Tony stepped into the corridor, the echoed 'thud's of his metal boots stomping across the floor told Steve where to walk as he used the sound to track Tony's whereabouts.

"Tony..."

"Fine." Exterior white lights on Tony's armor around his hands glowed to life and gave off enough illumination for Steve to see where he was going without having to listen for Tony's steps.

"Thank you..." Steve muttered coldly as he followed after Tony at a brisk pace eager to finish the mission as soon as possible. "Let's just find that generator and get out of here."

* * *

Thor and Loki had found themselves in the middle of a large command station that had once been used during the Cold War to monitor and all communications from Europe: friend and foe alike. The consoles have been long since abandoned and untouched for years. Lining the walls of the room were dozens of tall computers that looked as though they'd crumble into dust if touched, and large secured file cabinets were located at the rear of the room behind a massive overlook that stretched out into the center of the room over the consoles below.

"Charming crypt for dead secrets." Loki commented as he looked about the room with his fire as his guide. "Exactly how are we to locate these programs and files with technology that is completely foreign to us?"

"We know what files look like." Thor responded as he walked along the consoles, ducking his head down to check beneath the machines and scan the floor visually. "Those are papers contained in yellow colored bindings."

"Brother," Loki bowed his head slightly at the naive sincerity in Thor's claim. "Banner spoke of the files and programs as being those found within computers. These are digital files, nothing physical."

Thor lifted Stormbreaker. "Then perhaps we shall have to access these files another way."

"Do NOT swing your axe upon those devices!" Loki scolded like a father to a child. "Recklessness will surely spell our doom."

"Very well." Thor lowered Stormbreaker to his side once again and turned to look at Loki was enshrouded in the green glow of his magical flame. "We shall wait for Stark and Rogers to join us."

* * *

It only took a moment for Tony to locate the generator room stowed away in the Western corridor of the bunker and even less time to locate the generator itself. Keeping his visor down Tony scanned the machine to check its overall status and found it still fully capable of functioning properly at full power.

The room was barren save for the generator in the corner. There were light fixtures hanging down from the ceiling but no light switches. What appeared to emergency fire sprinklers had been installed in the ceiling but their appearance wasn't quite routine. There was a single door, no windows and by all accounts no purpose for the room except for the generator. Somehow this waste of space felt completely nonmilitary and more like prison.

"This is it." Tony knelt beside the generator in the corner and removed the panel at its side. "She's old but she'll do."

Steve pressed his finger to the com in his ear to contact Thor and Loki. "We found the generator. Any luck with the files?"

Silence.

"Hello?" Steve tried again to make contact. "Thor? Loki? Can you read me?"

Tony shook his head at Steve's failed efforts. "We're surrounded by miles of concrete and metal that snake around in a dozen different directions. Coms won't work while we're down here."

"Great. So how do we let them know we're making progress?"

"Well, I think the first clue would be the power returning to the bunker." Tony quipped as he used a heavy lever to prime the generator. "And the next clue would us returning to the designated rendezvous point as discussed."

"Right..." Steve looked around the generator room in the limited light provided by Tony's armor with a sense of unspecified dread. The walls were concrete but it appeared as though there was some kind of translucent plastic lining the walls as well. "Something doesn't feel right. This room is... unsettling."

"Afraid of the dark?" Tony asked in a snarky, condescending tone as he finished tending to the generator and fired it up. The room suddenly filled with a dim yellow light, half of the bulbs shattering from age while the others struggled to life. "There. Better?"

The lights above shifted from yellow to red as a blaring siren blasted through the entire bunker. The plastic over the four walls shifted forward, a fifth descended from the ceiling and sixth rose up from the floor beneath their feet. The six sides connected at the seams creating an air-tight and seemingly inescapable cube.

"What's happening?" Steve asked as he pulled his shield from his back and prepared to strike the side of the cube to break it.

The fire sprinklers above began to whir and shake violently as a cloud of indeterminate smoke began to expel downward, filling the entire room in the bizarre cloud.

"I think we just sprung a trap." Tony commented as his H.U.D. gave him a chemical composition on the smokey cloud now surrounding them inside their airtight box. "Whatever you do, don't breathe the fumes."

"Why? Poisonous?" Steve shouted over the blaring alarm still sounding off.

"Extremely."

' _Air toxicity at seventy-four percent and rising_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. reported without provocation.

"Why would this even be here? What's the point?"

"Security protocol. Just like the booby traps devised in ancient Egyptian temples and pyramids to ward off grave robbers."

"How we get out of here?"

"We don't." Tony stated without the faintest hint of emotion. "This box is airtight and the fumes are still filling the room around us. By the time the fumes dissipate we'll have run out of air."

Steve looked at Tony, noting the visor down over his face. The visor and helmet that was as airtight as the cube and designed to protect him even in the vacuum of space. "You mean _I'll_ run out of air..."

Turning to look at Steve through the H.U.D. display Tony could see Cap's current vital signs and registered that he was already beginning to show distress from the building hypoxia. "Yeah..."

* * *

Thor and Loki looked about the bunker in confusion as they had never encountered red emergency lights and a warning siren in such a manner before. There were no toxic fumes filling the air from their end of the bunker but the brothers knew something unfortunate had befallen their allies. Thor stared at Loki in the light of the green flame as he pressed his finger to the com in his ear to locate their friends.

"Stark. Rogers. What has happened?"

Silence.

"STARK." Thor shouted angrily. "ROGERS. What has happened?"

Loki quickly assessed the situation and devised a theory. "Perhaps our communication has been severed due to the depth and size of the bunker."

The lights in the room flickered to life and the computer consoles began to boot up automatically as the power flooded the Eastern portion of the bunker in a flash of energy.

"Or something else." Thor didn't understand why the power was on yet the siren was still blaring. "Come. We must find them."

* * *

Steve felt hot, his skin burning and sticky. A heaviness in his chest gave him an eerie reminder of his childhood illnesses and asthma attacks that began to upset the usually calm solider. The smoke and fumes of the toxic cloud continued to build and darken the room as the cloud encompassed the red lights that barely lit up the room.

"We need to get out of here."

"Yes, we do." Tony agreed. "But we can't do anything from this side of the cube."

"Yes we can." Steve insisted as he tightened his grip on the interior handle and support of his shield. "Find the files and report back to the compound."

"Cap?" Tony couldn't see Steve tighten his grip but he could read the determination on his face just as well. "Don't do it."

"That's an order."

"Cap, no!" Tony tried to reach for the shield but Steve stepped back.

"I'm sorry Stark. It's the only way!"

Turning on his heels with amazing agility Steve jumped against the side of the cube and leapt upward as he smashed his shield against the ceiling of the cube causing it to crack instantly.

"STOP." Tony took another step forward but Steve had already smashed his shield a second time against the cube in the same spot causing the crack to widen considerably before the plastic gave way.

The ceiling of the cube cracked and splintered into a form like a spiderweb. Small shards of the plastic rained downward as the concrete ceiling was again exposed. The toxic fumes spilled into the cube while the remaining clean air escaped in a matter of seconds.

"STEVE." Tony tried to get to his ally but Steve was already succumbing to the poison.

' _Air toxicity decreasing. Ninety-two percent_.'

"Go..." Steve coughed as he fell to a knee and put his arm over his mouth in a vain attempt to protect his airway. "get the files..."

Steve crumpled and fell to his side completely limp and unconscious right before Tony's eyes. Moving quickly Tony reached out a hand and managed to catch Steve's head before he bashed it against the ground and guide the choking man to the floor.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y." Tony pressed the gauntlet of his suit against the center of Steve's chest. "Reading!"

' _Full cardiac arrest_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. reported hastily. ' _Immediate resuscitation recommended as well as oxygen therapy_.'

"Oxygen..." Tony looked up at the ceiling of the room where Steve's shield had broken away the plastic. Raising his other gauntlet upward toward the center of the hole he unleashed a repulsor blast that tore through the concrete like a hot knife through butter.

Large chunks of the concrete came crashing down onto the two Avengers. Tony through his armored body over Steve's to shield him from the debris as sunlight, fresh air and dust filled the cube all around him.

"Steve? Steve!" Tony shook Steve's shoulders forcefully. "Come on, breathe! The air's clean now!"

' _Toxicity levels still eighty-percent, sir_.'

"How long until the air is breathable?"

' _Approximately six minutes_.'

"He doesn't have six minutes..." Tony took a deep breath as he pressed his fingers to the sides of his helmet to manually open up, knowing that the safety protocol would prevent the visor and helmet from opening automatically. Removing the helmet as a whole he placed it over Steve's head before he began compressing the downed man's chest. "Alright Cap, let's see how well that super soldier crap my dad worked on is really all that's cracked up to be!"

Steve was completely unconscious and no longer breathing. The strength of the Iron Man suit was enough to allow Tony to compress Steve's broad and artificially strengthened chest without difficulty, but the process was still physically taxing and Tony was exerting himself all the same.

"F.R.I.D.A.Y.," Tony paused to cough a little as he tried to hold his breath a while longer. "give me an update."

' _Air toxicity down to fifty-one percent. Captain Rogers is still unresponsive to C.P.R_.'

"What can I do?" Tony coughed again as he began to lose what little breath he still held.

' _Wait, sir._ '

"Can't I carry him to the surface? He CAN'T wait..."

' _Negative. The bunker's structural integrity has been compromised but escape is currently impossible. To widen the hold at least two more repulsor blasts will be required but the falling debris will damage the suit and make it unable to fly while supporting the weight of two people_.'

Tony registered the update with a heavy heart as he continued to compress Steve's chest. "Contact the compound. Tell them what happened and send us the coordinates." Sweat began to bead on his forehead and drip down his face. "...Get a sample of the poison. Send it to the compound... for... analysis."

' _Will do, sir._ '

As Tony's vision began to blur and his strength finally gave out he felt Steve's body lurch as he gasped for breath and his heart starting beating again on its own.

"Good boy..." Tony commented as his eyes shut and collapsed in a heap next to Steve on the floor of the cube. Feeling his own skin growing hot and his breaths becoming more and more strained with each shallow gasp Tony allowed his mind to quiet as he accepted his fate in the depths of the poisoned bunker next to the body of his former friend and leader.

A loud 'crack' filled the room as Stormbreaker pierced through the cube with an impossible ease and grace. The axe embedded itself against the far concrete wall opposite of the doorway as Thor and Loki rushed into the room and began tearing the walls of the cube apart.

"Rogers? Stark?" Thor called out his colleagues names as he and Loki knelt at their sides. "What has happened to them?"

F.R.I.D.A.Y.'s voice sounded off if their com links as she was synchronized amongst all communication channels. ' _The air was filled a highly toxic substance that has resulted the asphyxiation of Captain Rogers. Mr. Stark attempted C.P.R. before succumbing to the poison as well_.'

"Poison?" Thor gave Loki an odd glance.

"We are apparently immune." Loki stated as he removed the Iron Man helmet from Steve's face. Though pale and unconscious Loki could see that Steve was still breathing but in distress. "They are not."

"We must get them to the surface."

Loki's gaze drifted upward to the cracked ceiling. "And I see our way out."

Thor followed Loki's gaze as he summoned Stormbreaker from the wall and held the axe high into the air. "Prepare yourself."

Loki turned his face away from the impending lightning strike to spare his vision and to ensure no falling debris wounded their already downed colleagues.

As the massive bolt of lightning struck the bunker it split open the ceiling with a brutally loud 'crash'. Large portions of concrete fell from the ceiling and landed about the four Avengers below, Loki and Thor deflecting the falling debris as quickly as it fell.

Sunlight poured through the wide open hole as snowflakes wisped about on a fresh breeze.

"Go. I'll follow."

Loki nodded as he bent down and grabbed onto Steve's arm to pull the unconscious man up and into a sitting position. Pulling Steve's body over his shoulders Loki lifted him up into a 'fireman's carry' and stood in the center of the room with his arm extended out toward Thor.

Grabbing onto Loki's arm Thor easily hefted his brother straight up into the air allowing the god to gracefully leap out of the bunker with Steve unconscious on his back.

"Let us go home, Stark." Thor suggested as he did the same for Tony, slinging the armored Avenger over his shoulders in a 'fireman's carry' before using Stormbreaker to lift himself up and out of the bunker.

' _I have already informed Dr. Banner of their conditions_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. interjected as Thor and Loki carried their colleagues to the quinjet several miles in the center of a forest clearing. ' _I have also set the quintjet's coordinates and engaged autopilot_.'

"Good. I dislike flying aircrafts." Thor joked in an attempt to lighten the mood.

"And I dislike your piloting skills." Loki tagged on sharply. "Stick to the axe, it suits you!"

* * *

Back at the Avengers Compound Dr. Bruce Banner and (former) Agent Natasha Romanoff had received the message relayed from F.R.I.D.A.Y. regarding the situation in the bunker and were now preparing for the arrival of their two downed allies from the field. Banner had already begun analyzing the sample of the poison that F.R.I.D.A.Y. had scanned and chronicled into the database, and with this chemical composition broken down the clever scientists was able to synthesize a potential anti-toxin.

"How far out are they?" Bruce asked as he and Natasha stood in the hangar with two syringes containing the untested anti-toxin in his hand.

"About two minutes." Natasha calculated, her demeanor guarded and cold.

"Good thing Thor and Loki weren't affected by the poison. Otherwise..." Bruce's tone dipped considerably as he trailed off.

"Yeah." Natasha felt just an uneasy about the scenario. "They'll be okay."

"How about you?" The question was unexpected for both Natasha and Bruce despite it coming from his mouth. "I mean... You know..." Awkwardly stammering Bruce tried to remedy the situation. "It's been so bizarre and tense for the past couple of weeks... Are you... okay? I mean really okay?"

"I'm fine." Natasha tried to reassure him though her own voice was sounding frail, if not scared. "How about you?"

"I've... been worse."

The hangar began to open automatically as the quinjet returned to the compound as expected. Bruce and Natasha stepped back and shielded their eyes as the tremendous downdraft being produced by the landing aircraft was too intense to look toward without pain. As the quinjet landed the ramp lowered down to the ground quickly. Thor exited the craft first with Tony slung over his shoulder, followed shortly by Loki who had Steve over his own shoulder. The two poisoned Avengers were still unconscious but alive.

Bruce rushed over to meet the two Asgardians and pressed his fingers to the sides of Tony and Steve's necks to check for their pulses. "Still alive." Uncapping the first syringe Bruce pulled the gauntlet from Tony's hand to expose his arm up to his elbow and injected him with the anti-toxin directly into the vein. "Take him to my lab." Bruce instructed as he repeated the process with the second syringe on Steve's arm after rolling up the dark blue sleeve. "They'll need to be monitored closely."

"Of course." Thor obeyed Bruce's instructions and carried Tony to the lab with Loki walking at his side with Steve's unconscious form limp over his shoulder.

Natasha followed the two Asgardians as they walked quickly down the corridor. With a gentle touch she reached over and brushed the blonde locks that hung over Steve's face to the side and took in his pale complexion. "Hang in there, Cap." She whispered calmly. "We still need you."

Bruce had seen the gently caress of Natasha's hand against Steve's forehead and a twinge of jealousy filled his heart. How he had longed to tell Natasha how he truly felt about her and how much he dreamed of feeling her soft hand holding his, but the 'other guy' had always been too much of a threat to indulge in such fantasies.

Natasha looked back at Bruce over her shoulder. "How will we know if this stuff works?"

"Well, they'll either heal or... they won't."

"Seems pretty straightforward." Natasha commented as the two Asgardians reached Bruce's lab. "Lay them down." She instructed, moving along with Loki to help ease Steve's head down onto the exam table without jostling his neck.

Thor's strength easily compensated for the Iron Man suit that still concealed Tony's body under the protective layer of nanite infused metal. Laying Tony down on the table with incredible gentleness the god stepped back to allow Bruce to step forward.

"Banner, Loki and I appear to be immune to this poison. Can we be of assistance?"

"Maybe!" Bruce noted with a pointed finger in the air. "That's very good to know. If this anti-toxin doesn't work we may have to run some blood tests on you two so we can find some alternative to curing them."

Loki stepped away from the table as Natasha picked up Steve's hand and held it tightly in her own. "I've never seen Steve so pale before. Shouldn't his enhanced physiology be taking care of this?"

"Depends on the concentrations of the poison," Bruce explained as he pressed his hand down onto the arc reactor in Tony's chest causing the armor to retract into the small device implanted in Tony's chest allowing access to his body without armored hindrance. "and it depends on how long they were exposed to said poison."

' _Captain Rogers had been exposed for one minute and twenty six seconds before Mr. Stark placed the Iron Man helmet over his face_.' F.R.I.D.A.Y. informed the gathered group. ' _Mr. Stark had been exposed for two minutes and four seconds before the air had been entirely cleared_.'

"Let's put them on oxygen." Bruce decided, pointing to two of the four oxygen tanks mounted on the far wall. "It should help clear out their lungs and ease any respiratory distress they may experience."

"Right." Natasha made a move to the tanks but both Thor and Loki and headed her off and were now carrying the requested equipment over to the two exam tables. Securing the oxygen mask over Steve's face she watched as Bruce did the same for Tony. "Can we do anything to help?"

"Wait." Bruce stated flatly. "Maybe pray."

Feeling slightly uncomfortable Loki turned away from his injured colleagues and discreetly walked out of the lab. Upon his exit he nearly bumped into James 'Rhodey/WarMachine' Rhodes as he made his way into the lab.

"How're they doing?" Rhodey asked Loki without even the slightest lilt of hostility in his voice as he addressed the reformed god. "Is Tony..."

"Stark still lives." Loki replied firmly. "Banner is tending to him and Rogers as we speak."

"How about you? Are you and Thor okay?"

"Us?" Loki was sincerely taken aback by Rhodey's genuine concern for his and Thor's well being. "We are unharmed. The poison had no negative affects toward us."

"Good." Rhodey patted Loki's arm as he passed by him through the doorway. "At least some good came from this mess."

The act of kindness had left Loki stunned as he stood outside the doorway of the lab alone. Despite all of the horrible things he had done in the past he was still being shown true civility and dare he even say, friendship?

Rhodey stood next to the exam table where Tony was laying and put his hand down on Tony's shoulder. "Hey man, I thought you weren't going to do anything stupid anymore."

Natasha gave Rhodey a sly glance. "You know he can't resist when the opportunity presents itself."

"Yeah," Rhodey agreed with a half smirk. "I know. Too bad neither of us were in the mood to babysit today."

Bruce picked up Tony's wrist to check his pulse and let out a sigh of relief. "He's stable. Weak, but stable all the same." Clipping the sensor for the oxometer onto Tony's left index finger the nearby connected monitor showed a steady heart rate and respiration.

"Did the poison do any permanent damage?"

"Nothing that my tests have shown. Yet."

Rhodey leaned down over the table to study Tony's face. "Just so you know I looked into the coordinates that you sent us and compared it to government files. Nothing official appeared, but something unofficial did."

Natasha gently placed Steve's hand back down on the table as she overheard Rhodey's comment. "Something we can use to our advantage?"

"Something we should probably destroy." Rhodey looked over his shoulder to Natasha. "It was some kind of illegal, immoral and cruel experimental program designed to turn enhanced humans into weapons. It was left abandoned after one of their 'test subjects' tore the place to shreds and escaped."

"Escaped?" Bruce didn't like the sound of that. "Uh... is this subject... dangerous?"

"The subject has gone rogue." Rhodey explained calmly. "No incidents revolving around the subject had been reported since his disappearance. If anything if took a page out of your playbook and has been laying low, just trying to live as much as a normal life as possible."

"But that doesn't mean the government didn't stop looking for him."

"Most likely." Rhodey patted Tony's shoulder once. "They only look for people that they feel can line their pockets or win wars."

Thor stared at the floor with a sickened gaze. "Soldiers and warriors are not meant to be used as pawns in battle." he stated with a defiance that spoke volumes of the respect he held for all of those who are willing to fight to protect the innocent. "Nor as those who are blessed with enhanced abilities to be taken advantage of or segregated."

Steve's muffled voice responded to Thor's comment. "...That's why we protect the innocent without a government stronghold."

"Steve." Natasha put her hand to the side Steve's face gently as she looked down at him. "You're awake."

"Where's..." Steve tried to sit up but Natasha put her hands on his shoulder and pushed him back down. "Where's Stark?"

Natasha kept her silence as she nodded to the second table to the left of Steve.

Turning his head Steve looked at Tony unconscious on the exam table with an oxygen mask over his face and Bruce hovering over him. "...is he?"

"He's alive." Natasha confirmed as she put her hand back to his face and turned his gaze toward herself. "He's going to be okay."

"...He..." Steve was struggling to find his words and piece together his foggy memory. "Stark... He saved me. Gave me his air..." His hand raised up weakly and rested atop his own chest. "Revived me."

Rhodey and Bruce exchanged silent glances as they were unwilling to admit that they were surprised that Tony would risk his own life to save Steve's in the process.

Natasha could sense the building tension and put an end to it. "Sometimes the people we think have abandoned us have been really watching our backs the whole time."

At those words Thor immediately thought of Loki and looked up to locate his brother, only to see that Loki had already left the lab. Taking his leave quietly Thor exited the lab and walked down the corridor in search of Loki.

"Where have you gone, now?" Thor asked himself as he marched through the compound. A fresh breeze wafted through the common room indicating that someone was standing on the balcony one floor above. "Of course."

Thor ascended the white spiral staircase and spotted Loki standing on the balcony overlook the compound. A breeze allowed Loki's green cape to billow gently as he stood with his arms folded behind his back in a military style as he stared out at the night sky overhead.

"Brother." Thor joined Loki on the balcony and took a similar stance. "Rogers has awoken."

"I am not surprised." Loki replied flatly. "He is quite stubborn. Very much like another blond haired warrior I know."

Thor smiled a little. "Stark on the other hand remains unresponsive. Very much like a dark haired recluse that I know."

Loki glanced over at Thor and gave him a subtle smirk. "So the comparisons are not a figment of my imagination."

"No. I see it as well."

"While I can confirm that our constant past disagreements stemmed from sibling rivalry, I cannot trace the origins for these two."

"Actually," Thor arched a brow inquisitively. "I believe the same could in fact be said about Rogers and Stark."

"How is that?"

"As Father brought you to Asgard to become my brother, Stark's own father played a role in giving Rogers his enhanced strength. And from what I've been told by Rhodey the Father Stark had dedicated much of his life into trying to locate Rogers after he had disappeared, while isolating himself from Tony in the process."

Loki let out an amused sigh. "And so Tony Stark had grown jealous of the attention provided to Steve Rogers at the behest of Father Stark. How poetic that we should then unite as a singular team."

"Yes. But I fear the rift between these two cannot be repaired over time and understanding as it had been for us." Thor lamented as he watched the white stars slowly dot the black sky. "From what I've been informed a friend of Rogers had played a role in the deaths of Stark's father and his mother. And Rogers had kept this a secret from Stark."

Loki visibly winced at the revelation. "That is something truly horrific and cold." Loki looked down at his hand, remembering the first time he realized he was a Frost Giant when his skin had turned blue while on Jotunheim. "And I am expert on all things cold."

"If you are worried that I am keeping secrets-"

"No." Loki shook his head while he locked eyes with his brothers. "I am worried that Father had additional secrets that he had concealed from us."

"Such as Hela?" Thor laughed at the mention of their devious sister who had perished during Ragnarok.

"She was someone who came to mind, yes." Loki laughed a swell "But in truth, I have spent many nights wondering about my biological family and of the night in which Father had taken me to Asgard."

"You don't believe Father's story?"

"No. Nor do I believe his intentions."

"Loki..."

"I am not trying to start an argument or insult Odin's memory, but now that he is gone... as well as Laufey, I shall never the truth on that night." He leaned forward and bowed his head. "Was my adopting truly an act or mercy for an abandoned child, or was it a kidnapping to harm my parents? As much as I cared for Frigga as our Mother, I still cannot stop wondering about my heritage."

"I'm sorry. I never considered the inner-conflict that you've been enduring all this time."

"It is not your burden to bear."

"No, but as your brother is it my responsibility to help you."

Loki gave Thor an apprehensive stare. "Thank you, but, this is something I must come to terms with myself."

"When will you stop trying be a rogue and allow yourself to be a part of a team?"

"I wish I could say." Loki admitted feeling alone despite his brother's presence.

The two Asgardians continued to watch the night sky as more and more stars appeared in the sky overhead. A single shooting star streaked across the sky like a beacon of hope, like a pure ray of light breaking through the perpetual blackness of the night.

"You know something rather amusing?" Thor commented with a sly grin. "Rogers and Stark are very much likes brothers as we are."

Loki grinned as well as he took Thor's words to heart. "Two completely different people from two different worlds, brought together by the act of a single man."

"And much better people as a result of their meeting." He shrugged his shoulders playfully. "Granted a dew bruises and wounded egos fell prey to their relationship..."

"...but if given the chance they wouldn't want it any other way."

* * *

Steve had sitting up on the exam table hunched over slightly as Bruce ran the bell of the stethoscope over his back as he listened carefully to the super soldier's breathing and the strong thrumming of his heart beat. The oxygen mask was still over his face despite Steve's insistence that it was no longer necessary and was becoming rather annoying to speak through.

"Well?" Steve asked as Bruce finished listening to his lungs. "Do I pass?"

"Your respiration sounds normal and your heart is strong." Bruce confirmed as he draped the stethoscope around his neck. "I think you're going to be just fine, looks like the anti-toxin worked. But," he put his hand on Steve's arm. "I'd still like to run a blood test just to be sure."

"Yeah, no problem." Steve slipped the mask from his face and ran a hand over his sweaty facade. "No Dr. Palmer this time?"

"No, no, no." Bruce blushed a little at the mention of her name, as did Natasha who was standing over Tony's laying on the exam table. "Dr. Palmer was here only because I can't perform surgery solo. You two don't have to worry about that."

"That's good." Steve stood up and breathed deeply. "How's Tony?"

"Holding his own." Natasha stated as she looked down at the eccentric billionaire's face. "Weak but alive."

Rhodey was standing next to Natasha with a nervous hand pressed to his chin as his other arm was wrapped around his chest. "Wonder when he'll wake up?"

"Probably not for a while, still." Bruce commented dryly as he crossed the lab to get a needle for the blood test. Returning to Steve's side with the needle and a bottle of alcohol he swabbed the soldier's arm before he inserted the needle into the vein to draw some blood. "Why don't you two go finish analyzing the details from the bunker. I'll let you know if Tony comes around."

"Yeah, sure." Natasha cleared her throat nervously as she forced herself to lock eyes with Bruce. "I could use the distraction."

"I'll go with you." Rhodey volunteered calmly. "Then we can blow that Hell-hole off the map!"

"Sounds like fun!"

Steve waited until Natasha and Rhodey had left the room before he asked Bruce the one question he had been completely afraid and hesitant to ask. "Bruce, is Tony really going to be okay?"

Bruce fumbled and nearly dropped the vial of blood as the question was unusually upsetting. "Yes. I'm certain."

"Can... uh..." Steve nodded toward Tony awkwardly. "Can I speak to him?"

"Of course. I know he can still hear us."

"...Alone?"

"Uh, oh." Bruce caught on quickly and nodded subtly. "Yeah. Five minutes okay?"

"Yeah, that's plenty of time."

Bruce set the vial of blood down on the tray along with his stethoscope. "I'll be outside the door in case you need me for any reason."

"Thanks, Bruce." Steve appreciated the cooperation. As soon as the physicist had left him alone in the lab Steve walked over to the table where Tony was laying and looked down with immense sorrow in his eyes. "Tony... Thank you. You saved my life."

There was no response from Tony, not that Steve was expecting one. The display on the cardiac monitor remained unchanged and stable as the billionaire remained unconscious.

"I don't remember too much about what happened, but I do remember falling and someone catching me. I also remember feeling the Iron Man helmet being slipped on over my face which means you had to expose yourself to the poison in order to protect me. I... I thought it was a weird dream at first but now I know it was true. You risked yourself to save me. And you revived me with C.P.R."

Steve wiped his hand over his face nervously as he spoke to his painfully still friend.

"You could've let me die, right then and there, but... you didn't. You saved me. I don't think I was worth you risking your life for, so, I guess... I guess I have to prove that I'm really worthy of being saved, right?"

The cardiac monitor let out a little alarm as Tony's hand flinched and the oxometer fell loose from his fingertip.

"Tony?" Steve's eyes went wide with abject horror as the sound echoed loudly in his ears.

Bruce rushed back into the room to check the monitor and pressed his hand down on Tony's chest. Steve stepped back as Bruce gave Tony a once over and sighed in relief. "False alarm." Bruce picked up Tony's hand and replaced the sensor. "Sorry, hope I didn't scare you when I came running in."

"Not as much as that alarm did."

Tony's eyes began to flutter as he regained consciousness on the table. "...Where am I?" His voice was low and muffled but still audible.

"Tony!" Bruce retracted his hand from Tony's hand and checked his eyes. "Man, you're awake. Don't worry, you're safe back at the compound."

"...What happened?"

"What's the last thing you remember?" Bruce asked instinctively to check his memory and brain for any sign of damage.

Tony weakly pulled the oxygen mask from his face as his senses returned. "Finding the bunker. It was... under the snow."

"And after that?"

Tony shook his head a little. "Nothing. It's all a blank..." He tried to sit up but Bruce draped his arm over Tony's chest to keep him down against the table. "Were we attacked?"

Steve's heart sank a little. Tony didn't remember risking himself to save his life. He didn't remember that there was a piece of him that still gave a damn about saving Steve or protecting him.

Feeling disheartened Steve discreetly let the lab to retreat to his own quarters for the rest of the night. Everything was just too overwhelming for him to bear any longer.

"More like you accidentally sprung a trap." Bruce continued without noticing that Steve had left, although Tony did. "You and Steve were caught in it, but you're both going to make full recoveries."

"What kind of trap?" Tony pressed his hand to his forehead in pain. "Also, can I get some aspirin?"

"You two were dosed with a fast acting poison, but it appears that the age of the trap managed to dilute enough of the toxicity to keep you from being exposed to a lethal dose."

"Any side effects? Besides the incredible headache that you've yet to get the aspirin for?"

"No. You're both stable and showing normal vital signs."

"That's good. But it'd be better if you'd tell me that the trip to the bunker wasn't a bust!"

"Uh..." Bruce wrung his hands together nervously. "After you and Steve were poisoned Thor and Loki got you guys out there and back here. Rhodey and Natasha are going to go back tomorrow to salvage any useful information then destroy the bunker."

"Something bad happened in that bunker, didn't it?" Tony could tell that something ominous was hanging over Bruce's head. "I mean, aside from the poison trap."

"It looks like the bunker was used for illegal underground testing on innocent people." He let his hands drop to his sides in a motion of defeat. "And hundreds suffered in the name of that research."

Tony's eyes narrowed before he commented on the information. "Burn it. Burn it all to the ground."

"That's what Rhodey suggested." Bruce admitted with a slight smirk.

"And Rhodey's always right."

"Get some rest." Bruce urged calmly to his healing friend. "You can stay in here or go to your quarters, but you have to sleep."

Tony extended his hand and Bruce helped him to sit upright on the exam table. "If you let me have some damn aspirin I'll sleep naked on the roof."

"Please don't..."

 ** _...to be continued...  
_**


	3. Learning to Trust

Tony awoke from his less than restful slumber in his private quarters with an irritated grimace on his tired face. While the poison had cleared his system the headache that it had created had yet to leave his body. All the while his mind was racing with hundreds, if not thousands, of questions regarding the military bunker secluded so far North that it was no longer in the United States.

Who was in charge of the bunker? What types of experiments were being perform there? Who were the test subjects? How many lived? How many died? Where are they now? Did the volunteer like the Maximoff twins? Were they kidnapped? Why were they chosen? Who chose them? What purpose did they serve? When was the bunker deserted? Why was it deserted? What was that security protocol left to protect?

Unable to shake the questions and unable to sleep properly Tony discreetly stumbled about his room without addressing F.R.I.D.A.Y. or turning on the light. If the A.I. knew of his plans that she'd more than likely alert the others to his plan.

Pulling on a white long-sleeved shirt and a black t-shirt over top he grabbed a pair of his dark blue jeans and threw them on over his boxers before slipping on a pair of socks and shoes.

Unlocking the door to his quarters he stepped out into the dimly corridor and headed toward the hangar of the compound as silently as possible.

* * *

Standing alone on the balcony that stretched outward over the expansive green property of the compound Loki continued to gaze up at the stars alone. With his arms behind his back and his green cape billowing in the breeze the emotionally conflicted god thought back to the past when he and Thor were young children and never at odds with one another.

Thor had gone to his own quarters to rest for the night but Loki was still too alert, too guarded to sleep properly while surrounded by the other Avengers.

Keen senses allowed Loki to sense any movement in the building, hear any small sound and see any minor movement that the others would otherwise miss. Catching the distinct but faint sounds of footsteps heading toward the far side of the compound the god's curiosity was piqued.

Turning his head slightly he caught the passing motion of someone walking about the hangar despite the late hour of the night.

* * *

Entering the hangar without disturbing anyone else in the compound Tony honed in on the arc reactor that now contained the nanite technology that encompassed his Iron Man suit. The dark blue hoodie that bore the reactor had been damaged but it was damage that could easily be mended within a few minutes under Tony's skilled hands.

After being rescued from the bunker and being treated in Bruce's lab, Rhodey had taken the reactor and stored in the hangar to receive a proper power charge on Tony's behalf.

As Tony reached out to reactor a voice called out to him from the entrance of the massive hangar.

"Might I ask where you are going?"

Tony turned around quickly and saw Loki standing in the doorway with his arms still folded behind his back. "Out." Was Tony's curt and cold reply. "I'll be back in four hours."

"You are still ill. I can see the pain in your eyes." Loki commented as he approached the engineer cautiously. "I need not be a doctor to know that someone who had been so close to death very recently should not be venturing alone."

"And I don't need to be a psychologist to know that I never asked your opinion in the first place. Besides, it's not my fault Banner is so miserly with aspirin."

Unfazed by the remark Loki continued to attempt to reason with Tony in a manner befitting the stubborn mortal. "If you won't listen to my opinion then perhaps a profession assassin could persuade you to rethink your decision."

"You'd tell Nat?"

"Without hesitation."

Tony smirked a little as he slipped on the hoodie and powered up the reactor. The blue triangle in the center of his chest glowed to life as the reactor exhibited the extraordinary energy contained within itself. "You know, I get the feel you're more afraid of her than I am."

"And you speak as if this should be a shock." Loki arched a brow slightly at Tony to try and keep the moment from becoming hostile. "She is, after all, a professional killer; where as we are but mere hobbyists."

Tony laughed a little at the joke. "Can't argue with that."

"Stark," Loki kept his voice level and non-confrontational as he spoke softly. "please tell me where it is you are going."

"Why? What concern of it is to you?"

"I do not want to see you fall victim to another injury. Nor do I want to regret my decision to allow you to go alone if something were to befall you."

"Wow. That sounded almost like you actually care."

"Almost." Loki smugly stated in a manner mirroring Tony's own attitude. "I'm working on it."

A little impressed with Loki's stubbornness on the situation and his refusal to relent Tony decided to finally answer. "Alright, here's the deal." The nanites in the reactor swarmed over Tony's body when Tony's hands pressed concealed switches in the fabric of the hoodie, covering the engineer in the iconic red and gold armor of the Iron Man suit. Only his head and neck were left uncovered. "That bunker is housing a dirty little secret and I'm going to find out what it is."

"Why not join Lady Romanoff and your friend Rhodes tomorrow morning?"

"First of all, Romanoff is no lady, she's a woman; hear her roar. Second, it's 'Rhodey' not Rhodes. And third if I wait until tomorrow morning I'd have everyone keeping my grounded here for the same reason you're trying to stop me right now. Nat and Rhodey will blow that bunker off the face of the Earth before anyone has the chance to find out what that dirty little secret could be. And I have enough regrets in life. I don't want to add another one by sitting idle and doing nothing."

"I see..." The emotion in Tony's soulful brown eyes was palpable to the surprisingly empathetic god. "I shall assist you."

"You'll... what?"

"I cannot in good conscience let you traverse a dangerous location alone."

"Uh-huh. Remember what I said about regrets?" Tony challenged vehemently. "Most of those revolve around getting innocent people hurt. Sorry pal, can't let you go."

"First of all," Loki parroted Tony's previous speech without missing a beat. "I'm far from innocent. Second, I too carry regret and would like a chance to atone for my past actions. And third, seeing as I was the one who located the entrance to the bunker while your sensors failed to do so, it seems you require my presence if you wish to be successful."

Staring at the wall past Loki for a moment Tony contemplated Loki's logic. His eyes fell downward to the small and discreet two person airplane resting idly beside the massive quinjet and finally acquiesced. "Alright. Fine. You can come with me."

"Very well."

"But you're going to have to find a way to get us both out of here without the others knowing we're gone. We just need a couple of hours."

"This will not be a challenge."

"Good. Let's go. You're my eyes in the sky, 'Goose'."

Loki didn't understand the reference by followed Tony as he returned his armor to the reactor in his chest. As pulled open the door in the side of the plane and took his place as behind the controls Loki stepped inside and gazed about the seemingly primitive compartment completely unimpressed by the Midgardian technology.

"Don't look at the controls like that." Tony scolded playfully as he flipped a few switches and checked the gauges. "It may not look like much but it'll get us from 'A' to 'B' without any problems."

"Problems such as noise?"

"Like I said, it doesn't look like much, but..." Tony reached up and pressed a small red button mounted in the ceiling of the cockpit. "with a few tweaks what looks unassuming can become a great threat."

The dual propellers, one mounted to each wing, spun to life mutely as the engines too powered up in complete silence.

"Impressive modification."

"Yeah. Discretion isn't exactly my strength, so you should be impressed."

Tony managed to quietly taxi the plane out of the hangar and down the private runway without uttering a single sound in the process. As the plane built speed and took to the sky Loki gazed outward from his window to the stars as they steadily became nearer, yet still remained painfully far away.

"Now, here's the deal:" Tony stated firmly enough to gain Loki's full attention without sounding crazy or violent toward his only ally in his endeavor. "We find the bunker, we explore the bunker, we take what we can from the bunker, then we blow up the bunker. In. That. Order. Understood?"

"Understood." Loki's eyes drifted slowly away from the stars and over to Tony. Though he was acting and sound normal, (normal for Tony anyway) there was still concern that he was either still too sick or too weak to be taking on such a delicate, potentially dangerous mission alone. "And if I sense that you are in failing health I will report back to the compound."

"How? I'm the one with the radio."

"I have my own methods."

"Secret codes? Secret language? Telepathy?"

"Hardly." Loki resumed staring at the stars through the window as the plane soared through the night sky, passing through thin clouds like an eagle soaring through an early morning fog. "Telepathy is a skill one is born with it. It cannot be learned despite my mother's best efforts."

Tony was a little stunned by the serious he answer that he had received for such a sarcastic question. "I can't tell if you're joking or not. You're kind of a hard read, still."

The remainder of the flight was spent in silence. Neither man knew what to say to one another as neither could consider the other a friend, or even an ally. Though the silence was awkward it provided Tony with enough solace to ignore his lingering headache and allowed Loki to return to his thoughts as he continued to contemplate his role on Midgard, as well as a part of the team.

A flurry of snow began to swirl around the plane as the duo headed further North in search of the enigmatic bunker in an attempt to unravel the mystery before it was too late.

Wind created turbulence but Tony was able to masterfully compensate and navigate through the snowstorm as he pinpointed the last recorded coordinates regarding the bunker itself.

"Landing now. You may want to strap yourself in." Tony cautioned without any emotion in his voice whatsoever.

"Here?" Loki questioned as he took Tony's advice and secured the safety harness over his chest. "We are still several meters South of our target."

"I know that, but the storm is making it too difficult to get close enough without sheering our wings off in the treeline. Also, fourth thing: we're located in the United States: We say 'miles', not 'meters'."

"I'll try to remember."

"You do that."

The plane dipped slowly as Tony circled a wide open clearing in the forest less than two miles away from the buried bunker. The blackness of the night made it difficult to accurately land but there was enough space to fully accommodate the plane without damaging it in the process. The lights on the front of the plane illuminated the various snow covered trees and made the falling snowflakes glisten brilliantly with crystalline flashes.

"Okay. It took about an hour to get here, so we have two hours to search through the bunker and an hour to get back before anyone notices. That is as long as you keep up your end of the deal and prevent anyone from noticing that we're gone."

"You need not worry about my responsibility."

"Worried you might disappoint your brother?"

"You do realize that it is these very types of scenarios that I have been actively trying to avoid to assure Thor that he can trust me?"

"And yet you volunteered." Tony remarked dryly and he opened the side door of the plane and set foot on the snowy ground. "Cold!" The nanites in his suit reacted quickly encompassing him in the airtight armor that easily shielded him from both the wind and the cold of the snowstorm. "Better."

"Do you realize that I volunteered only because I could not dissuade you from being reckless?"

"Yeah, not a great defense. But don't worry, if Thor gets on your case I'll vouch for you. But I _won't_ take an axe to the chest for you."

"I don't doubt it."

"Okay, lead the way." Tony pointed outward with an opened hand toward the North. "You found the entrance before, you can find it again."

Loki gave Tony an annoyed glance before stepping forward in long strides through the building now and over the downed trees that resulted from age and disease. Loki was able to easily navigate the dark terrain as and Thor had enhanced vision compared to that of the Midgardians, but chose to use his previous trick and extended his hand to create a small green flame in the center of his palm to illuminate the area. Tony needed the H.U.D. of his helmet to guide him through the snowy woods as he followed behind Loki.

"There." Loki pointed to the large boulder that had been the marker for the bunker's entrance was visible through the treeline to his keen eyes. "The entrance."

"Good work." Tony walked past Loki and stood beside the boulder. Looking at the entrance with mild apprehension Tony stepped back and scanned the area over top of the buried bunker. A few yards away a massive pit leading down into the section of the bunker where Tony and Steve had been trapped in the poison trap was visible and ominous. "This is where we escaped, right?"

"Pardon?"

Tony pointed at the pit and took a step forward. "That hole. That's where you and Thor got us out." The numerous footsteps in the snow surrounding the pit was indicative of two people pacing about the pit before walking away with heavy weight in each step. The weight being the unconscious bodies of himself and Steve draped over Loki and Thor's shoulders. "You carried us back to the quinjet by escaping through there, right?"

"Yes." Loki nodded as he joined Tony and stood at his side. "It was more efficient than trying to carry you through the narrow corridors of the poison filled bunker."

"Well, good thing you're immune and my suit is airtight." Tony commented as he walked closer before leaping down into the pit and landing on the concrete floor below with a audible metallic 'thud'. "You coming?" His voice echoed loudly as he shouted up to Loki still outside.

Loki let out an annoyed sigh before he followed Tony to the hole and leapt down with a graceful jump. An aura of green flame accompanied Loki as he rapidly descended into the bunker and joined Tony within.

"Nice landing." Tony commented as Loki joined him in the bunker. "Now, I'm convinced that this area was guarded because it houses the generators that power the bunker." He motioned toward the breakers on the far wall connected to the massive generator in the corner. "So that makes me believe that there is another section of the bunker storing secrets and lies. I want to find it."

"When Thor and I explored the bunker we located a room on the opposite that housed a control panel and numerous computers."

"That would the section I'm looking for." Approaching the breakers Tony scanned the electronic switches for any damage before he charged up the generator and restored power to the bunker.

"Are you sure that is wise?" Loki cautioned as he looked about the room with an unsteady gaze. "The lingering poison could be flammable."

"Could be." Tony agreed as he flipped the breakers and filled the bunker with electricity. "But I think it's dissipated enough to be rendered inert."

"What makes you think that?"

"The room has had hours to air out. And I doubt that the nasty little worm who rigged this room to fill with poison would be dumb enough to keep anything combustible contained within a tight space underground when trying to be discreet."

"Sound reasoning."

"Front and center 'Tonto'. Lead me to the other end of the bunker."

"Very well, *'Starkad'." Loki quipped in response.

"Uh... Right." Tony didn't understand the insulting nickname that Loki had placed upon him, but thought it was only fair as he had continuously labeled Loki under unflattering or bizarre nicknames as well. "We'll turn on the lights when we find the computer room. Don't want to risk a burnout."

Under the eerie glow of the green flame the duo ventured into the depths of the bunker in search of the control room that Loki and Thor had found during their initial exploration of the bunker.

"It is located down here." Loki stated as he retraced his steps to the desired location. "Mind you I had to keep Thor from smashing the computers inside the room. Whatever damage may have resulted in the destabilization of the bunker's ceiling is not any fault of my own."

"As long as the computer's turn on we're good." Tony explained as he and Loki entered the control room. The massive computers lining the walls were covered in bits of dropped concrete and dust but seemed unharmed beyond some dirt and a few inconsequential dents. "Moment of truth..."

Retracting his helmet from over his face Tony took in a deep breath and didn't feel any discomfort upon inhalation. The air was clear of the poison.

"Good start." Tony declared as he made his way over to the nearest computer and located the power switch. "Now, let's see if this was all for nothing." Pressing down on the button the massive computer made a loud whirring noise as the dated components within surged to life. The modem began to shake and caused the walls and floor beneath it to vibrate in response.

"Is it supposed to sound like that?" Loki asked as he stared at the rectangular behemoth through the green flame in his palm.

"Think so. But this computer is older than I am." Tony admitted as he watched numerous lights glow orange and yellow as they began flashing rhythmically along the face of the computer modem. "Now we need to access the data."

"And how is that done?"

"Come here." Tony approached the computer monitors lined up on the desk and turned those on as well. A flickering screen in black and white appeared on the display as basic code began to activate automatically. "Once this program is booted up we can search through the documents for anything questionable, interesting or even kinky."

"Why do I get the feeling the last of those options was merely a jest?"

"Because you're getting to know me."

A line of code appeared at the top of the display followed by a second line beneath it, then a third, fourth and so on for dozens and dozens of lines.

"This may take a while..." Tony sighed as he looked around the control room for any other pieces of equipment that could be useless or at the very least entertaining. "Let's make a quick survey. We have..." Noting the time counting down on a mini digital display on his arm he made a mental note to move as quickly as possible. "one hour and twenty-two minutes to get out of here and back to the plane."

"Very well." Loki looked about the room using his flame to guide his eyes. "Shall I look for additional light sources?"

"No. These computers require a lot of power and we're going to need them all up and running. I don't want to risk blowing a fuse beyond repair."

One by one the large computers were switched on by a quick flick of Tony's finger. Each computer whirred to life in a manner similar to the first; a loud noise and orange lights accompanying the modems as they powered on. A low heat began to fill the room as the massive machines expelled warmth from the multiple components and machinations began moving in response after years of sedation. The floor began to tremble noticeably and the walls were shaking from the combined motion of the modems rumbling with activity.

"There we go, that should do it."

Loki watched as Tony leaned down over the computer monitor and read the display quickly before he began typing away on the dusty keyboard to gain access to the old files in search of anything of interest.

"Exactly what is it you're searching for?" Loki asked as he stepped closer to the monitor and watch Tony typing hastily away on the old keys.

"Don't know yet. But when I find it, you'll know."

Unsure of what he could possibly do while Tony tended to the computers Loki chose to pace about the control room with the green flame in his hand to light his way. Puffs of dust were getting stirred up by the computer modems making the air thick. Through the thickness of the dusty air Loki noticed that the swirling was continuing even beyond the range of the modems, which meant there was another source of motion taking place in the bunker.

"I believe the ceiling and walls have been compromised." Loki warned as he looked over the formerly smooth concrete surfaces and noted dozens of cracks and fractures snaking in all directions.

"We won't be long." Tony replied as he searched over the documents, honing in on the ones that were either locked or password protected. A small USB thumb drive appeared from a compartment in the side of the gauntlet on his left hand. Place the USB on the floppy disk port of the nearest modem the USB modified its design with the aid of nanite technology and began downloading all of the data Tony had uncovered in a matter of seconds. "I'm going to download everything just to be safe and get out. But it may take some time, there's a lot of stuff."

Loki watched in fascination as the cracks widened right before his eyes. Dust and snow began to pour in like sand in an hourglass as the modems continuously destabilized the walls and subsequently the ceiling overhead.

"We may have to leave soon. The walls are unstable and I fear the ceiling will collapse."

"Just a few seconds..."

A loud 'crack' that Loki only heard as he was closest to the source of the sound and Tony couldn't hear it over the whirring sounds of the dozen large computers all around him signified the impending collapse as more dust, snow and now large chunks of concrete began to crumble into the room from the walls and the ceiling.

"Stark!"

Tony looked up in time to see the ceiling coming down into the room at a rapid and thunderous pace. Pulling the USB from the modem he took a step back and replaced his helmet over his head and neck just seconds before the entire bunker collapsed from the strain of age and neglect.

* * *

Cold wind and a terrific pain in his left side roused Tony from the blissful state of unconsciousness that had been so rudely awoken. Opening his tired his eyes his vision slowly clear though the sight before him was less than detailed. A ceiling of whiteness created by layers of ice and snow completely surrounded him. A sensation of numbing cold encompassed his entire body save for the searing agony in his lower left abdomen, and a faint warmth lingering atop his body.

Lifting his head Tony saw that there was a long green blanket draped over his body. But the blanket wasn't actually a blanket, it was a cape.

Loki's cape.

Turning his head slightly Tony saw Loki standing at the entrance of what he now realized was a shelter composed of snow and ice. Loki's hands were folded behind his back as had become his natural posture. Blood stained Loki's fingertips and the palms of his hands.

"Loki?" Tony called out to the god in a low voice.

In response to Tony's voice Loki turned his head and looked down at the injured man laying in the snow behind him. "You've awakened."

"What happened?"

"The bunker collapsed. We escaped. Again."

"The data?"

Loki held up the USB that Tony had used to download the data in his right hand. "It escaped as well."

"And my..." Tony pushed down the cape and lifted it up his shirt, it was then he saw that he had a massive bruise on his side in a location eerily close to where Thanos had stabbed him weeks before. "I guess I want to ask is: What happened to my armor?"

"It prevented you from being killed, but it could not protect you from four tons of crushing concrete weighing down on a single point."

"But you did?"

"I moved out of harm's way and dug you out."

"Great. We need to-" Tony tried to sit up but the pain in his abdomen stopped him mid motion.

"Lay back." Loki urged as he took a knee beside Tony and pushed him back down to the ground. The dried blood and bruises on his hands and fingers was evidently painful to the god. "You may have suffered from internal injuries and I cannot save you if you are in fact bleeding."

"We have to get back to the compound."

"Yes. That is why I summoned help."

"Summoned... HOW?"

"Before we left I created an illusion of myself to patrol the compound in the event anyone came looking for me or went to check on you. Through this illusion I could monitor activity in the compound during our absence, while also allowing me to remain in contact with the team. Once you became injured I used this illusion to alert Thor."

"You little distraction tactic doubled as an emergency contact? Smart."

There was a rush of air that swirled around the shelter as the quinjet arrived at the location Loki had mentioned. As the quinjet landed the sound of Thor's heavy and fast footsteps shook the small shelter as he ran as fast as he could through the snow.

"Loki?!" Thor marched into the shelter with anger in his eyes. "Why did you sneak away?"

Loki rose to his feet to speak to Thor face to face. "I did not-"

"Do not lie!" Thor scolded as he put his hand tightly on Loki's shoulder with a painful grip.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Tony interjected quickly. "Loki didn't sneak off, I did! He tried to stop me."

"He what?" Thor let go of Loki's shoulder and focused on Tony laying on the snow behind Loki.

"I was trying to get here alone when your brother spotted me. I didn't want to stay so he went with me in case something like this happened." Tony looked at Loki and nodded once respectfully. "Glad he did."

Bruce entered the shelter behind Thor and pushed past the angry god to kneel beside Tony in the snow. Reflexively he pulled up Tony's shirt and eyed the painful bruise that Loki had noted when he called for help. "Man, you're lucky!"

"How is this lucky?"

"It's been almost an hour since Loki called for help and in that time the bruise has remained the same size and color, which means it isn't the result of an internal hemorrhage. It's just a bruise. A very large, painful bruise that I'm going to monitor closely for the next week or so."

"Oh. That is lucky... I guess."

"Can you stand?"

"Don't know."

"Come on." Bruce offered Tony his hand, which the pained engineer accepted. "We'll get you back to the compound."

"Right." As Tony stood up Loki's cape fell from his body and landed on the snow at his feet. "Is Nat here?"

"Yes. She and Rhodey are going to make sure that bunker is truly destroyed then we're ALL going back to the compound, and we're going to STAY there until we have a plan against Thanos."

"Believe it or not, but I like that idea."

* * *

Tony laid on the exam table in Bruce's lab with his shirt off and his bruise exposed. Due to the recent accumulation of severe injuries that Tony had endured in a very short amount of time Bruce was giving him a thorough physical to ensure that he wasn't suffering from any unseen underlying injuries that could kill him, and to ensure that there was no trace of poison left in his system.

"How does it look, doc?" Tony asked dryly as Bruce counted his radial pulse. "Did I live?"

"For now." Bruce replied as pressed his hands against Tony's abdomen to palpitate the bruise and surround tissues in search for any internal bleeding. "You're very fortunate that Loki went with you. If you had been alone we would've never found you in time."

"Yeah, good thing he told his big brother where we were."

"Is... Is that all you think happened?"

"That's all that Loki told me happened." Tony's brow arched in confusion. "What am I missing?"

Sighing Bruce took a seat in the chair beside the table and told Tony everything that happened to him while he was unconscious and buried in the ruins of the now destroyed bunker.

"When the collapse happened Loki's leg was pinned beneath a massive slab of concrete. After he got his leg free he located you in the pile of debris... you weren't breathing."

"I... What?"

"Your armor kept your body from being crushed but it was putting so much pressure on your abdomen that you couldn't breathe. Loki had to use more strength than he should while he's recovering from his broken neck to get you free. He contacted us, Thor and myself, I told him how to deactivate your armor so he could take all of the pressure off your abdomen and you began breathing again."

"Oh."

"Then after he dug you out of the rubble he carried you to safety over his shoulder and built that shelter out of snow and ice with his bare hands. He kept you warm and stable until we arrived, ignoring his own injuries in the process. You were unconscious for almost the entire hour since he contacted us and we found you. If he hadn't done what he did you would've died."

Tony didn't no what to say about the matter. It wasn't the first time someone had sacrificed their own well-being to save his life, but he was bound and determined to make sure that Loki would be the last.

"Where is he now? How's his leg and his hands?"

"I bandaged him up on the quinjet while you were resting. Nothing broken but he has some pretty deep cuts in his hands and a bruise that rivals your own on his leg."

Tony was silent for a moment before asking another question. "Can I go to my quarters?"

Bruce crossed his arms over his chest and shot Tony an irritated glance. "You seriously think I'm going to let you alone in your quarters after this stunt you pulled?"

"I wouldn't trust me either, but, I can assure you I'm not going anywhere. I promise."

Squaring his jaw thoughtfully Bruce decided to let Tony go but under strict conditions. "Alright. But if I think you're going to sneak out I'm going to ask Steve to babysit you. Got it?"

"Got it."

"And if I think you're going to do anything stupid I'm going to have Nat babysit you."

"Uh... Okay. You know she'd kill me to stop me, right?"

"Right."

"Okay then. At least we understand each other." Bruce swung his legs over the edge of the table and stood up slowly. "Can I have a shirt?"

"Sure." Bruce gave him a clean black t-shirt to wear. "Remember: if you leave the compound you're getting supervised for the rest of your life."

"Yeah, I'll remember." Tony slipped on the shirt and walked through the door to the lab and began walking down the corridor. As he traversed the long hallway he caught sight of Loki standing idle on the balcony on the floor above and decided to speak to him.

Loki sensed Tony's approach and turned to look at the engineer as he joined him on the balcony. "Stark."

"Loki." Tony saw the white bandages wrapped around Loki's hands and made a comment. "How're your hands?"

"They'll be fine. How is your side?"

"Sore." Tony cleared his throat nervously before continuing. "Look, Bruce told me what happened. He told me how you saved my life; unburying me from the rubble, how you got me breathing again and kept me warm while you built a shelter with your hands... Everything."

Loki didn't respond to the statement. Humility was a new trait for the god and one that he adopted expertly despite the odds against it.

"So... Thanks."

"You do not have to thank me."

"You're right. I don't. But I want to. So I did. Thanks."

"You're... welcome."

"Where's Thor?" Tony asked as he looked around for any sign of the God of Thunder.

"I do not know, nor do I care to know."

"Still angry?"

"Yes. But not with me."

"He's not mad at me... is he?"

"Fortunately no."

"Thank god!"

"He's angry at the situation." Loki explained calmly. "The display of mistrust amongst the team has disheartened him to our cause."

"Yeah... I don't blame him." Tony admitted with guilt in his voice. "Guess we've all been too guarded and angry with each other as of late."

Loki handed Tony the USB containing the downloaded information from the bunker without blinking. "Let us hope this was worth our time and the risk."

Tony accepted the USB and stared at it with indifference as it rested in the palm of his hand. "Only one way to find out."

"Good luck with that."

"No, no, no." Tony lightly put his hand on Loki's shoulder. "You're going to come with me."

"I am?"

"Yes. Bruce doesn't want me to be alone and if he thinks I'm up to something he's going to send Rogers or Nat after me. I prefer you over them and we all know you're very good at keeping me safe."

"I..."

"Come on." Tony pulled on Loki's shoulder relentlessly. "Let's go Loki. We have some work to do."

For the first time since he had joined the team Tony had finally addressed him by his proper name and did so without even the slightest hint of malice to his tone. Perhaps Thor's anger was misplaced. Maybe the team was capable of trust, but it would take time to become mutual.

"Very well." Loki agreed slowly. "This time you lead the way."

 _ **-The End**_

 **Author's Note: *** Starkad is a hero from Norse Mythology who performed many heroic deeds, but was also guilty of numerous crimes. Stark and Starkad. Couldn't resist!


End file.
